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HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 


WEED 
JAMI;-  GORDON   MI  N 
EPES  BARG1 


HOI;  MI.  I;I;I;KLEY 

3E   in  l.i. 
\MI\    RUSSELL 


C  HA  I  { l.I-iS    A.    DANA 

BACH  \i;i\ll   POULSOM 

I'lin.ii'  n;i-:\EAU 


HISTORY  OF 
AMERICAN   JOURNALISM 


BY 


JAMES  MELVIN  LEE 

Director  of  the  Department  of  Journalism 
New  York  University 


WITH  ILLUSTRATIONS 


BOSTON  AND  NEW  YORK 
HOUGHTON  MIFFLIN  COMPANY 
J&re$*  Cambri&0e 
1917 


COPYRIGHT,    1917,    BY  JAMES    MELVIN    LEE 
ALL    RIGHTS    RESERVED 

Published  December  rgr? 


•• 


TO 

MY  FIRST  JOURNALISM  CLASS 

NEW  YORK  UNIVERSITY  SCHOOL 

OF  COMMERCE,  ACCOUNTS 

AND  FINANCE 


371634 


PREFACE 

THE  first  printed  account  dealing  in  any  way  with  American 
journalism  was  undoubtedly  a  letter  addressed  to  the  president 
of  the  Massachusetts  Historical  Society  and  published  for  that 
society  in  1798  as  a  part  of  its  Proceedings.  This  letter,  entitled 
"A  Narrative  of  the  Newspapers  Printed  in  New  England," 
was,  though  signed  "A.  Z.,"  written  by  the  Rev.  John  Elliott, 
D.D.,  Pastor  of  the  North  Church  of  Boston.  Full  of  errors, 
it  is  interesting  only  in  a  sense  that  it  marked  the  beginning  of 
printed  literature  on  American  journalism.  A  continuation  of 
the  narrative  by  the  same  author  was  published  in  the  Collec- 
tions of  the  Massachusetts  Historical  Society  for  1800.  In- 
cluded in  this  second  narrative  was  a  shorter  letter,  sketching 
the  newspapers  of  Connecticut  from  1755  to  1800,  from  the 
pen  of  Noah  Webster,  who  had  already  achieved  fame  as  a 
distinguished  lexicographer. 

In  1810  Isaiah  Thomas  of  Worcester,  Massachusetts,  pub- 
lished his  History  of  Printing  in  America,  in  two  volumes.  But 
for  these  volumes  little  would  be  known  about  many  of  the  early 
American  printers  and  their  papers.  The  second  edition,  revised 
and  enlarged  in  1878  by  the  American  Antiquarian  Society  which 
had  been  founded  by  Mr.  Thomas,  will  always  be  the  standard 
work  for  the  period  which  it  covers. 

Joseph  Tinker  Buckingham  brought  out  in  Boston  in  1850 
Specimens  of  Newspaper  Literature,  in  two  small  volumes.  With 
one  or  two  exceptions,  its  contents  were  limited  to  the  news- 
papers of  New  England.  Though  based  upon  the  history  by 
Thomas,  it  enlarged  much  of  the  biography  and  reprinted  many 
extracts  from  the  newspapers  discussed.  Two  years  later,  Buck- 
ingham published  two  volumes,  of  about  the  same  size  as  those 
already  mentioned,  entitled  Personal  Memoirs  and  Recollections 
of  Editorial  Life.  The  latter  work  was  practically  a  biography 
of  its  author,  who  was  closely  associated  with  the  journalism 
of  Boston. 


viii  PREFACE 

Frederic  Hudson,  for  many  years-  the  managing  director  of 
The  New  York  Herald,  issued  in  1873  his  Journalism  in  the 
United  States.  This  book,  which  aimed  to  cover  the  period  from 
1690  to  1872,  contains  many  interesting  sketches  of  editors  and 
their  papers,  but  is  so  full  of  errors,  and  is  so  biased  in  its  point 
of  view,  that  it  cannot  be  accepted  as  an  authority  even  for  the 
period  with  which  Mr.  Hudson  was  most  familiar. 

The  United  States  Government  in  1880  issued,  in  connection 
with  its  publications  of  the  census  for  that  year,  a  History  and 
Present  Conditions  of  the  Newspaper  and  Periodical  Press  of  the 
United  States.  For  the  historical  part,  the  book  was  based  upon 
the  works  already  mentioned  and  perpetuated  then1  errors.  Its 
statistical  matter,  being  compiled  from  data  furnished  to  the 
census,  makes  it  a  valuable  contribution  to  journalism  history. 

In  1881  Charles  Dudley  Warner,  a  member  of  the  editorial 
staff  of  The  Courant,  of  Hartford,  Connecticut,  published  an 
essay,  The  American  Newspaper,  which  he  had  read  before  the 
Social  Science  Association  at  Saratoga  Springs,  New  York,  on 
September  6  of  that  year.  Brief  as  was  this  booklet,  it  was  a 
most  comprehensive  summary  of  journalism  as  it  then  existed. 

Nothing  else  of  general  scope,  except  scattering  magazine 
articles  and  biographies  of  individual  editors,  has  appeared  to 
record  the  developments  of  American  journalism. 

The  author  of  this  book,  while  acknowledging  his  indebted- 
ness to  the  works  already  enumerated,  has  sought  in  every 
instance  to  verify  facts  as  original  sources:  in  his  attempt  to  do 
so  he  has  been  greatly  assisted  by  secretaries  of  state  historical 
societies  to  whom  acknowledgment  for  courtesies  rendered  must 
first  be  made. 

To  acknowledge  in  print  others  who  have  helped  in  the  prep- 
aration of  the  manuscript  is  obviously  impossible,  except  in  a 
few  cases.  For  information  and  data  about  papers  of  the  Co- 
lonial Period  the  author  is  indebted  to  Albert  Matthews,  of 
Boston,  Massachusetts,  who  has  always  been  ready  to  answer 
questions  about  the  early  papers  of  New  England,  and  to 
Clarence  R.  Brigham,  of  Worcester,  Massachusetts,  who,  as 
secretary  of  the  American  Antiquarian  Society,  has  furnished 
many  dates  as  to  the  beginnings  of  early  papers  in  several 


PREFACE  ix 

of  the  States.  To  these  gentlemen,  more  than  to  any  other  two 
individuals,  he  is  indebted  for  help  and  cooperation. 

A  partial  statement  of  some  indebtedness  may  be  given  as 
follows:  Willis  J.  Abbot,  journalism  in  Chicago;  N.  A.  Baker, 
first  paper  in  Wyoming;  W.  W.  Ball,  journalism  in  South  Caro- 
lina; Edmund  Booth,  activities  of  The  Grand  Rapids  Press, 
Hilton  U.  Brown,  story  of  The  Indianapolis  News;  John  S. 
Butler,  first  newspaper  in  Idaho;  William  Conant  Church,  at- 
tempt to  make  The  New  York  Sun  a  religious  newspaper;  Clyde 
Augustus  Duniway,  freedom  of  press  in  Massachusetts;  Samuel 
E.  Forman,  newspaper  activities  of  Philip  Freneau;  Frederick 
K.  Freeman,  history  of  The  Frontier  Index;  Robert  L.  Fulton, 
early  Nevada  papers;  C.  B.  Galbreath,  early  Ohio  papers;  H.  J. 
Haskell,  data  about  The  Kansas  City  Star;  Grace  Raymond 
Hebard,  pioneer  papers  of  the  West;  George  H.  Himes,  early 
Oregon  newspapers;  John  W.  Jordan,  first  papers  in  Philadel- 
phia; Daniel  S.  B.  Johnston,  journalism  in  Minnesota  Terri- 
tory; Robert  Lathan,  early  papers  of  Charleston,  South  Caro- 
lina; Virgil  A.  Lewis,  early  West  Virginia  newspapers;  Colonel 
Clement  A.  Lounsberry,  first  paper  in  North  Dakota;  Charles  R. 
Miller,  Tweed's  exposure  by  The  New  York  Times;  C.  P.  J. 
Mooney,  peripatetic  career  of  The  Memphis  Appeal;  D.  D. 
Moore,  journalism  of  New  Orleans;  Albert  H.  Nelson,  early 
papers  of  Oklahoma;  William  Nelson,  early  New  Jersey  papers; 
John  R.  Rathom,  story  of  The  Providence  Journal;  Don  C. 
Seitz,  Sunday  journalism;  Joanna  H.  Sprague,  early  papers  of 
Utah;  Melville  E.  Stone,  news-gathering  associations;  Reuben 

old  Thwaites,  pioneer  papers  of  the  West;  Rev.  Richard  H. 
Tierney,  S.  J.,  bulls  against  news-letters;  Lyman  Horace  Weeks, 
early  American  news-letters;  Richard  H.  Waldo,  advertising 
ethics;  Louis  Wiley,  modern  tendencies;  Stephen  B.  Weeks, 
early  North  Carolina  papers;  Horace  G.  Whitney,  history  of 
The  Deseret  News;  John  P.  Young,  California  newspapers. 

For  many  courtesies  in  checking  up  dates  of  newspapers  the 
author  is  indebted  to  William  A.  Slade,  Chief  of  the  Periodical 
Literature,  Library  of  Congress;  Horace  G.  Wadlin,  Librarian 
of  Boston  Public  Library;  Wilberforce  Eames  and  John  B. 
Elliott,  of  the  New  York  Public  Library.  For  information  from 


x  PREFACE 

unpublished  manuscripts  he  is  indebted  to  Victor  Hugo  Palsits, 
of  the  Manuscript  Department  of  the  New  York  Public  Library. 

The  8Jns  of  omission  are  doubtless  many  owing  to  the  diffi- 
culty, in  spite  of  the  cooperation  received,  to  get  information 
desired.  Suggestions  and  additional  information  will  be  wel- 
comed from  any  source. 

The  last  chapter,  dealing  as  it  does  with  many  points  about 
which  there  is  a  difference  of  opinion,  might  very  properly  be 
considered  a  sort  of  appendix  for  the  expression  of  personal 
views.  In  all  other  chapters  a  sincere  attempt  has  been  made 
to  keep  strictly  to  facts  and  to  documents  quoted.  No  history, 
however,  would  be  complete  without  some  discussion  of  the 
charges  brought  by  critics  against  the  newspapers  of  to-day. 
The  evidence  has  been  presented  and  readers  may  draw  their 
own  conclusions  about  the  so-called  weakness  of  the  present 


JAMES  MELVIN  LEE. 
NEW  YORK  UNIVERSITY, 
October,  1917. 


CONTENTS 

I.  INTRODUCTORY 1 

II.  PRECURSORS  OF  AMERICAN  NEWSPAPERS     ....      8 

III.  THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  NEWSPAPER — THE  BOSTON  NEWS- 

LETTER 17 

IV.  BEGINNINGS  IN  COLONIES 28 

V.  BEGINNINGS  IN  COLONIES  (continued) 44 

VI.  COLONIAL  PERIOD,  1704-1765 62 

VII.  REVOLUTIONARY  PERIOD,  1765-1783 82^ 

VIII.  PERIOD  OF  EARLY  REPUBLIC,  1783-1812     ....  100 
V/iX.  FIRST  DAILIES  AND  EARLY  PARTY  ORGANS       .      .      .118-" 

"  <x?t  PARTY  PRESS  PERIOD,  1812-1832 140 

XI.  BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES,  1783-1832 164 

XII.  BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  PENNY  PRESS 185 

XIII.  TRANSITION  PERIOD,  1832-1841 206 

XIV.  BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  AND  TERRITORIES,  1833-1873    .  230 
XV.  MEXICAN  WAR  TO  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD,  1846-1860  .      .  258 

XVI.  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD,  1860-1865 .285 

XVII.  RECONSTRUCTION  PERIOD,  1865-1880 317 

XVIII.  PERIOD  OF  FINANCIAL  READJUSTMENT,  1880-1900  .      .  352 

XIX.  PERIOD  OF  SOCIAL  READJUSTMENT,  1900-    .      .      .      .388 

XX.  JOURNALISM  OF  TO-DAY 429 

INDEX 451 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

NINE  AMERICAN  EDITORS:  THURLOW  WEED,  HORACE  GREELET, 
CHARLES  A.  DANA,  JAMES  GORDON  BENNETT,  JESSE  BUEL, 
ZACHARIAH  POULSON,  EPES  SARGENT,  BENJAMIN  RUSSELL, 
PHILIP  FRENEAU Frontispiece 

HOGARTH'S  HEADING  OF  JACOBITE'S  JOURNAL 6 

THE  FIRST  ISSUE  OF  THE  BOSTON  NEWS-LETTER   ....    18 

MORTUARY  ISSUE  OF  BRADFORD'S  PENNSYLVANIA  JOURNAL  ON 
OCCASION  OF  THE  STAMP  ACT 82 

A  BROADSIDE  OF  EDES:  A  REVOLUTIONARY  "EXTRA"  OF  THE 
BOSTON  GAZETTE 86 

CARTOON  BY  WILLIAM  CHARLES:  "THE  TORY  EDITOR  AND  His 
APES  GIVING  THEIR  PITIFUL  ADVICE  TO  THE  AMERICAN 
SAILORS"  . 140 

THE  FIRST  ISSUE  OF  THE  NEW  YORK  SUN 188 

ADVERTISEMENTS  IN  THE  PHILADELPHIA  A  URORA,  SHOWING  FREE 
USE  OF  CUTS  BEFORE  THE  INVENTION  OF  CYLINDER  PRESSES  .  224 

THE  EXTRA  IN  CHARLESTON  WHICH  ANNOUNCED  THE  ORDINANCE 
OF  SECESSION 282 

GREELEY'S  EDITORIAL  ATTACK:  "ON  TO  RICHMOND"  AS  SEEN 
BY  A  CONTEMPORARY 302 

JOINT  ISSUE  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO  MORNING  PAPERS  THE  DAY  AFTER 
THE  EARTHQUAKE  . 416 


UNIV. 
CALIFORNIA 


HISTOEY  OF 
AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 


CHAPTER  I 
INTRODUCTORY 

THE  desire  to  hear  or  to  know  the  new  thing  is  as  old  as  man. 
It  was  an  instinct  even  of  the  most  primitive  people.  Before  the 
men  of  the  Stone  Age  traded  in  the  products  of  the  soil  or  of  the 
hand,  they  exchanged  news.  But  the  historian  of  journalism  is 
interested  primarily  not  in  the  news  which  is  spoken,  but  in  that 
which  is  written.  He  finds  little  to  attract  his  attention  until 
he  reaches  the  invention  of  the  written  language.  Triangular 
figures  chiseled  in  stone  and  strange  characters  pricked  on  goat- 
skin may  give  history,  but  not  news.  When  the  first  written 
newspaper  —  for  letters  giving  the  news  were  sold  and  circulated 
long  before  the  invention  of  the  printing-press  —  appeared  is 
not  known.  Some  say  it  was  in  Rome;  others  assert  it  was  in 
Venice.  Recent  investigators  of  the  question  have  given  the 
honor  to  China. 

On  one  matter  there  has  been  no  difference  of  opinion:  in 
every  country  the  printed  has  grown  out  of  the  written  news- 
paper. Even  after  the  invention  of  printing  it  was  a  compara- 
tively long  time  before  the  printing-press  was  called  upon  to  aid 
in  the  dissemination  of  news.  A  little  thought  on  the  subject  will 
give  the  reason.  Not  until  printed  sheets  could  be  produced 
cheaper  or  quicker  —  in  actual  practice  both  —  than  the  written 
ones  did  the  gatherer  and  seller  of  news  forsake  the  latter  for  the 
former.  Even  then,  the  complete  change  was  not  made  suddenly. 
Libraries  and  museums  have  in  their  archives  combination 
sheets,  half  printed  and  half  written.  It  was  the  custom  at  one 
time  to  leave  one  page  free  from  printing  in  order  that  the  latest 
news  or  freshest  advices  might  be  written  in  by  hand. 


AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 


always  been  the  two  most  important 
topics  in  Newspaper  dom.  There  was  no  systematic  collection 
or  distribution  of  news  until  men  had  a  political  interest  in  the 
state,  or  were  involved  in  financial  transactions  covering  a  fairly 
wide  area  of  trade  and  transportation.  In  most  countries  both 
conditions  were  present  before  regular  trade  in  news  arose.  The 
walled  city  required  no  newspaper  :  the  tower  watchman  and  the 
king's  herald  did  the  reporting.  When,  however,  officials  left  the 
city  to  govern  undefended  towns,  there  must  be  devised  some 
new  method  of  publishing  the  official  proclamations  and  of  giv- 
ing the  gossip  of  the  capital.  When  commercial  houses  began  to 
import  and  export  goods,  maritime  news  had  a  cash  value  and 
might  be  sold. 

EOMAN   NEWS-LETTERS 

By  way  of  illustration,  the  Republic  of  Rome  may  be  men- 
tioned. As  early  as  449  B.C.  official  protocols  of  the  transaction 
of  the  Senate  were  kept  and  deposited  in  the  Temple  of  Ceres,  in 
charge  of  the  police  commissioners  (cediles).  It  was  permissible 
to  take  notes  or  to  have  them  taken  and  then  to  communicate 
these  memoranda  to  others.  When  sent  to  the  provincial  gov- 
ernors, or  tax-farmers,  these  notes,  with  their  additions  of  local 
gossip,  became  news-letters.  Their  writers,  in  the  early  days  of 
the  Republic,  were  intelligent  slaves:  later,  bonded  freemen  took 
up  the  work  and  sold  their  letters  to  any  one  who  would  pay  the 
price.  Signs  of  "courtesy  to  the  press"  began  to  appear  about 
this  time,  for  these  news-writers  could,  upon  the  presentation 
of  proper  credentials,  obtain  admission  to  the  meetings  of  the 
Senate.  Wealthy  Romans  in  the  provinces  continued  to  supple- 
ment these  regular  news-letters  by  special  reports  from  their  own 
correspondents,  just  as  the  modern  newspaper  may,  in  addition 
to  the  service  of  the  Associated  Press,  have  its  own  correspond- 
ents at  strategic  points  to  send  in  special  items  —  or  "stories" 
as  they  are  called  in  the  language  of  the  newspaper  office. 

Antony,  for  example,  was  one  of  these  men  who  kept  in  touch 
with  the  political  situation  and  the  financial  condition  in  Rome 
by  means  of  such  news-epistles.  In  a  way,  he  owned  his  own 
newspaper  of  a  single  edition,  for  the  man  who  wrote  these  news- 


INTRODUCTORY  3 

letters  was  not  allowed  to  write  to  other  officials.  There  were  in 
the  city,  however,  men  who  sent  out  two  or  more  news-letters 
to  patrons. 

In  the  year  51  B.C.,  when  Cicero  left  for  Cilicia,  his  friend 
Cselius  promised  "to  write  a  full  and  careful  account"  of  all  that 
went  on  in  Rome.  The  latter,  being  "  the  laziest  man  in  the  world 
at  writing  letters,"  shifted  the  burden  of  his  correspondence  to 
the  shoulders  of  one  of  these  professional  writers  of  news.  Later, 
Caelius  did  find  time  to  send  this  line:  "  If  the  news-letters  do  not 
give  you  what  you  want,  let  me  know,  for  I  do  not  want  to  spend 
my  money  only  to  bore  you."  Cicero's  reply  was,  in  modern 
phraseology,  "  Stop  my  paper ! "  He  did  not  care  for  the  sporting 
news  of  gladiatorial  matches;  he  did  not  want  the  court  news, 
chronicling  the  adjournment  of  trials;  he  did  not  read  with 
interest,  so  he  asserted,  the  news  that  was  n't  fit  to  write  — 
"such  things  as  nobody  ventured  to  tell"  him  when  he  was  in 
Rome.  What  he  desired  was  the  political  news  of  the  city,  and 
reports  of  occurrences  where  there  was  something  especially 
affecting  himself.  In  the  last  suggestion  he  gave  to  the  pro- 
fessional journalist  at  Rome  a  tip  which  the  modern  school  of 
journalism  follows  when  it  instructs  its  students  to  put  names 
into  the  newspaper. 

C^SARS   AS  JOURNALISTS 

First  place  in  Roman  journalism,  however,  belongs  to  Julius 
Csesar,  another  friend  of  high-school  days.  One  of  his  first  acts 
after  he  became  Consul  in  60  B.C.  was  to  issue  a  decree  that  the 
reports  of  the  doings  of  the  Senate  should  be  daily  written  and 
published.  Knowing  the  value  of  publicity,  he  hoped  in  this  way 
to  change  the  crooked  politics  of  the  time ;  at  least,  he  was  deter- 
mined that  no  secret  acts  of  the  Senate  should  interfere  with  his 
plans.  The  result  of  Caesar's  decree  was  the  establishment  of 
that  precursor  of  the  modern  daily  newspaper,  Acta  Diurna,  or 
The  Daily  Acts.  At  first,  this  daily  compilation  was  published 
on  a  whitened  wooden  board,  called  album  (white).  In  other 
words,  the  Romans  got  their  news  in  the  Forum,  much  as  we 
often  get  an  epitome  of  the  latest  events  by  standing  and  watch- 
ing the  bulletin-boards  of  the  modern  newspaper. 


4          HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

The  Daily  Acts  had  a  special  department  in  which  were 
recorded  all  the  births  and  deaths  of  the  city.  It  did  not  neglect 
financial  news,  for  it  recorded  the  receipt  by  the  treasury  of 
taxes  from  the  provinces.  Like  the  modern  newspaper,  it  paid 
special  attention  to  both  civil  and  criminal  courts  and  made  a 
special  feature  of  election  news.  Everything  done  by  the  Imperial 
family  was  chronicled  faithfully.  One  other  fact  must  be  noticed 
in  passing  —  both  Julius  and  Augustus  Caesar  knew  how  to  work 
the  press.  The  former  secured  good  display  in  The  Daily  Acts 
when  he  declined  the  title  of  king;  and  the  latter  promoted  his 
attack  on  race  suicide  by  inserting  items  about  Romans  who  had 
large  families.  In  addition  to  the  bulletin-board  edition  of  The 
Daily  Acts  there  was  a  written  one  for  circulation  in  the  home. 
One  Latin  author  mentioned  a  Roman  lady  reading  her  morning 
paper,  and  another  said  that  he  would  wait  at  Thessalonica  for 
The  Daily  Acts.  Seneca  once  boasted  that  his  liberality  was  not 
" written  up"  in  The  Daily  Acts.  Based  upon  this  edition  was 
a  still  larger  written  newspaper  sent  to  subscribers  outside  of 
Rome.  The  professional  journalist  took  the  items  of  The  Daily 
Acts,  gathered  others  of  his  own,  and  then,  mounting  a  little 
platform  in  his  shop,  dictated  the  news  to  a  dozen  slaves  who 
produced  a  written  newspaper  of  twelve  copies.  The  size  of  such 
an  edition  was  limited  only  by  the  number  of  slaves  employed. 

ORIGIN   OF   SENSATIONAL  JOURNALISM 

The  Daily  Acts  probably  continued  even  after  the  capital  had 
been  moved  from  Rome  to  Constantinople.  For  fifteen  centuries 
little  advance  was  made  in  the  written  newspaper  —  unless  the 
ability  to  manufacture  news  might  in  some  way  be  considered  a 
development.  The  ability  to  invent  news  and  to  mix  truth  and 
falsehood  became  almost  a  profession  (ars)  in  Rome,  and  was 
carried  to  such  an  extent  that  the  church  was  forced  to  take 
drastic  action.  Papal  bulls  were  issued  against  the  writing  of 
such  news-letters,  under  penalties  recorded  in  both  temporal 
and  ecclesiastical  laws.  In  1572  the  saintly  Pope  Pius  V  threat- 
ened "death  and  confiscation  of  property,"  according  to  "the 
degree  of  the  offense  and  the  rank  of  the  offender."  His  successor, 
Gregory  XIII,  a  great  educationist,  issued  another  bull  which, 


INTRODUCTORY  5 

while  leaving  all  former  laws  about  the  news-letters  in  full 
force,  declared  that  writers  of  lettere  d'  avvisi  should  be  sent 
"to  the  galleys,  either  for  life  or  for  a  term,  without  hope  of 
pardon." 

THE    WRITTEN   NEWSPAPER 

The  written  newspaper  spread,  chiefly  by  way  of  Venice,  to 
other  countries.  Many  fanciful  tales  are  told  about  the  contri- 
bution of  Venice  to  journalism.  The  assertion  has  been  made 
that  that  city  also  had  its  Daily  Acts,  for  the  privilege  of  seeing 
which  a  subscription  price  of  a  gazetta  was  asked,  and  that  from 
this  custom  came  the  name  so  often  applied  to  newspapers,  The 
Gazette.  But  these  rumors  are  doubtless  highly  colored,  for  this 
term  did  not  come  into  general  use  until  a  much  later  date. 
Venice  did  have,  however,  the  first  press  bureau,  an  organization 
which  gathered  and  retailed  news  in  a  wholesale  way.  Its  news- 
letters were  far  more  timely  in  contents  than  those  which  had 
previously  gone  out  from  Rome. 

By  1600,  what  might  be  called  epistolary  newspapers  were 
appearing  in  Italy,  in  France,  in  Germany,  and  in  England.  It 
was  in  Germany  that  such  sheets  reached  their  highest  develop- 
ment. France,  however,  led  in  the  spoken  newspaper.  In  Paris 
there  were  men  who  stood  at  street  corners  and  told  the  gossip 
of  the  city.  When  they  had  finished,  they  passed  around  the  hat. 
At  night  they  met  at  a  tavern  where  they  swapped  news-items 
gathered  during  the  day. 

THE    SPOKEN   NEWSPAPER 

In  the  Swiss  village  of  Champery  the  spoken  newspaper  still 
survives.  Curiously  enough,  it  is  a  Sunday  edition.  On  that  day, 
immediately  after  church,  the  villagers  hear  The  Town  Crier. 
Its  editor,  literally  the  publishing  bailiff,  appears  on  a  balcony 
overhanging  the  street  and  announces  the  news  to  those  on  the 
village  green.  First  of  all,  he  gives  the  information  about  the 
decisions  of  the  courts  and  announces  the  decrees  both  federal 
and  cantonal.  He  speaks  of  the  fines  and  penalties  incurred 
by  the  citizens  of  the  community  and  brings  to  public  attention 
all  the  official  decisions  of  the  civil  authorities.  All  citizens 


6  HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

are  expected  to  listen  to  this  spoken  newspaper,  and  no  one  can 
fall  back,  if  he  transgresses  one  of  the  published  decrees,  on 
the  assertion  that  he  was  not  present  when  The  Town  Crier 
announced  the  official  decree. 

The  Town  Crier  of  Champery  has  its  spoken  advertising  depart- 
ment. Its  publisher  gives  notice,  by  spoken  word,  of  the  public 
auctions  of  household  goods,  cattle,  etc.,  as  announced  by  the 
Office  of  Law  and  Bankruptcy.  The  Town  Crier  gives  the  news 
of  mercantile  houses,  with  the  prices  of  the  goods  they  are  offer- 
ing. It  gives  notice  of  lost  and  found  articles  and  quotes  the 
price  paid  by  local  establishments  for  farm  products.  In  other 
words,  it  takes  the  place  of  a  local  printed  newspaper,  which,  up 
to  the  present  time,  has  never  existed  in  Champery. 

BIRTH   OF   ENGLISH   JOURNALISM 

In  some  respects  the  evolution  of  journalism  in  London  was 
the  same  as  that  found  in  Rome.  Men  of  wealth  lived  only  four 
or  five  months  in  London  and  spent  the  rest  of  the  year  in  the 
country.  While  away  from  the  city,  they  wanted  to  know  the 
doings  of  the  court  and  the  gossip  of  the  coffee-houses.  To  keep 
themselves  informed,  they  hired  professional  letter-writers  who 
gathered  the  items  and  then  forwarded  the  most  important  by 
special  post.  One  of  the  best  and  hence  busiest  writers  of  such 
letters  was  one  Thomas  Archer.  So  excellent  was  his  service  that 
demand  for  his  letters  became  larger  than  he  could  supply  by 
his  pen.  To  meet  this  demand  he  called  the  printing-press  to  his 
aid,  and  instead  of  posting  items  on  irregular  days  of  the  week, 
he  put  them  all  in  one  letter,  printed  it,  and  mailed  it  by  a  cer- 
tain post.  Nathaniel  Butter  was  the  first  regular  publisher  of 
this  printed  news-letter,  The  Weekly  Newes,  and  posterity  has 
called  him  rather  than  Archer  the  founder  of  the  English  news- 
paper press.  There  had  been  an  occasional  printed  news-sheet 
or  news-book  before  the  appearance  of  The  Weekly  Newes,  but 
to  Nathaniel  Butter  belongs  the  honor  of  "printing  all  the  news 
of  the  day  upon  a  single  sheet  and  publishing  it  regularly  week 
by  week  upon  fixed  days  and  of  giving  it  a  distinctive  title  at  a 
time  when  there  was  nothing  that  could  with  strictness  be  called 
a  newspaper."  Papers  with  dates  prior  to  1622,  when  The  Weekly 


1'  , 

i 


INTRODUCTORY  7 

Newes  first  appeared,  have  come  to  light  from  time  to  time,  but 
they  have  all  proved  to  be  forgeries. 

CONDITIONS   IN   CHINA 

In  the  case  of  China,  however,  the  change  from  the  written 
to  the  printed  sheet  was  abrupt.  Chinese  publishers  wasted  no 
time  by  printing  from  movable  type,  but  jumped  at  once  from 
the  hand-written  production  to  the  impression  from  a  wooden 
block.  The  news  was  written  on  a  transparent  sheet,  pasted 
face  downward  on  a  wooden  block,  and  then,  save  where  the 
Chinese  characters  showed,  the  wood  was  chiseled  away.  The 
block  was  then  inked,  pressed  upon  a  sheet  of  white  paper,  and 
lo,  a  printed  newspaper! 

By  way  of  conclusion,  it  may  be  noted  that  the  English  term 
"newspaper"  was  first  used,  according  to  the  best  information 
obtainable,  in  the  year  1670,  when  it  appeared  in  a  letter  ad- 
dressed to  Charles  Perrot,  the  second  editor  of  The  Oxford  Ga- 
zette. The  expression  was  found  in  the  request,  "I  wanted  your 
newes  paper  Monday  last  post." 


CHAPTER  II 
PRECURSORS  OF  AMERICAN  NEWSPAPERS 

AMONG  the  broadsides  published  in  New  England  during  the 
early  colonial  days,  to  correct  false  reports,  may  be  found  cer- 
tain printed  sheets  so  closely  resembling  a  newspaper  that  such 
a  term  has  been  applied  to  them.  While  they  did  give  some 
domestic  news  of  the  colonies  and  while  they  were  printed  to 
sell  as  news  sheets,  they  had  no  regularity  in  publication,  being 
issued  only  once.  Consequently,  they  are  to  be  regarded  as  the 
precursors  of  the  newspaper  press  and  not  as  real  newspapers. 

GREEN'S  BROADSIDE 

One  of  the  earliest  of  these  broadsides  —  in  some  ways  the 
most  important  —  was  The  Present  State  of  the  New-English 
Affairs  (1689).  It  was  a  single  sheet,  8  x  14 J  inches,  printed 
on  only  one  side.  Its  printer  and  publisher  was  Samuel  Green. 
The  first  part  consisted  of  an  extract  from  a  letter  of  the  Rev- 
erend Increase  Mather,  dated  at  Deal  in  Kent,  to  Simon  Bald- 
win, Governor  of  the  Massachusetts  colony  in  New  England. 
The  most  important  item  in  the  sheet  was  a  "  passage  extracted 
from  the  publick  News-Letter"  (of  London)  for  July  6,  1689. 
Because  the  extract  has  historical  value  and  at  the  same  time 
shows,  to  a  certain  extent,  the  kind  of  news  found  in  The  London 
News-Letter,  it  is  worth  quotation :  — 

The  people  of  New  England  having  made  a  thorow  Revolution,  and 
secured  the  publick  Criminals.  On  Thursday  last,  the  Reverend  and 
Learned  Mr.  Mather,  President  of  the  Colledge,  and  Minister  of  Bos- 
ton, waited  on  the  King;  and  in  a  most  Excellent  Speech  laid  before 
His  Majesty,  the  State  of  that  People;  saying,  That  they  were  sober, 
and  Industrious,  and  fit  for  Martial  Service;  and  all  with  their  Lives 
and  Interests  were  at  His  Majesties  Command,  to  tender  the  same  unto 
His  Majesty:  That  they  desired  nothing  but  His  Majesties  Acceptance 
of  what  they  had  done,  and  His  Protection;  and  that  if  His  Majesty 
pleased  to  encourage  and  Commission  them,  He  might  easily  be  Em- 


PRECURSORS   OF   AMERICAN   NEWSPAPERS      9 

perour  of  America.  His  Majesty  assured  him,  that  He  was  pleased  with 
what  was  done  for  Him,  and  for  themselves  in  the  Revolution,  and  that 
their  Priviledges  and  Religion  should  be  secured  unto  them. 

The  Present  State  of  the  New-English  Affairs  was  published 
"to  prevent  false  reports."  Other  news-handbills  must  have 
circulated  rather  extensively  about  this  time,  for,  toward  the 
close  of  1689,  the  Massachusetts  authorities  passed  a  resolution 
that  "  whereas  many  papers  have  been  lately  printed  and  dis- 
persed, tending  to  the  disturbance  of  the  peace,"  any  person 
guilty  of  printing  or  even  concealing  "such  like  papers"  should 
be  "accounted  enemies"  of  the  Government  and  "be  proceeded 
against  as  such  with  the  uttermost  severity."  Nothing  did  more 
to  hinder  the  development  of  American  journalism  than  the 
requirement,  "Published  by  Authority."  Freedom  of  the  press 
came  only  after  a  hard-fought  struggle. 

A   NEAR-NEWSPAPER 

An  attempt,  however,  was  made,  in  1690  to  establish  what 
would  have  been  a  newspaper  had  there  been  more  than  one 
issue.  On  September  25  of  that  year,  Benjamin  Harris  brought 
out,  in  Boston,  Publick  Occurrences.  It  was  to  have  been  pub- 
lished once  a  month  or  oftener  "if  any  glut  of  occurrences  hap- 
pen." As  it  was  not  published  by  authority,  the  Governor  and 
Council  promptly  found  that  the  pamphlet,  as  it  was  called, 
contained  "reflections  of  a  very  high  nature"  and  ordered  its 
suppression.  They  also,  in  the  same  resolution,  forbade  "any 
person  or  persons  for  the  future  to  set  forth  anything  in  print 
without  license  first  obtained  from  those  that  are,  or  shall  be 
appointed  by  the  Government  to  grant  the  same."  Because  of 
this  drastic  action,  it  was  almost  fifteen  years  before  another 
attempt  was  made  to  give  Boston  a  newspaper. 

Publick  Occurrences,  Both  Forreign  and  Domestick,  was  a  small, 
four-page  sheet,  1\  x  ll|  inches,  and  had  two  columns  to  the 
page,  except  on  the  fourth,  which  was  free  from  any  printing. 
The  only  known  copy  of  this  sheet  is  preserved  in  the  London 
Public  Record  Office,  where  it  was  found  in  1845  by  the  Rev- 
erend Joseph  B.  Felt,  of  Salem.  Frederic  Hudson,  in  his  "Jour- 
nalism in  the  United  States,"  published  an  expurgated  copy  of 


10         HISTORY   OF   AMERICAN   JOURNALISM 

its  contents  which  has  since  been  reprinted  in  many  American 
publications,  and  in  1901  Samuel  Abbott  Green,  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts Historical  Society,  reproduced  the  original  in  facsimile. 
An  unexpurgated  version  of  Publick  Occurrences  is  here  given 
for  the  sake  of  historical  accuracy.  The  purpose  for  which  the 
sheet  was  printed,  as  well  as  the  way  in  which  the  items  were 
told,  will  surely  attract  the  attention  of  the  reader  of  to-day. 
Harris  had  a  keener  sense  of  news  value  than  most  of  the  other 
men  who  started  Colonial  newspapers. 

PUBLICK  OCCURRENCES 

Both  Forreign  and  Domestick. 
Boston,  Thursday,  Sept.  25th.  1690. 

It  is  designed,  that  the  Countrey  shall  be  furnished  once  a 
(or  if  any  Glut  of  Occurrences  happen,  oftener,)  with  an  account  of 
such  considerable  things  as  have  arrived  unto  our  Notice. 

In  order  hereunto,  the  Publisher  will  take  what  pains  he  can  to  ob- 
tain a  Faithful  Relation  of  all  such  things;  and  will  particularly  make 
himself  beholden  to  such  Persons  in  Boston  whom  he  knows  to  have 
been  for  their  own  use  the  diligent  Observers  of  such  matters. 

The  which  is  herein  proposed,  is,  First,  That  Memorable  Occurrents 
of  Divine  Providence  may  not  be  neglected  or  forgotten,  as  they  too 
often  are.  Secondly,  That  people  every  where  may  better  understand 
the  Circumstances  of  Publique  Affairs,  both  abroad  and  at  home; 
which  may  not  only  direct  their  Thoughts  at  all  times,  but  at  some 
times  also  to  assist  their  Businesses  and  Negotiations. 

Thirdly,  That  something  may  be  done  toward  the  Curing,  or  at  least 
the  Charming  of  that  Spirit  of  Lying,  which  prevails  amongst  us,  where- 
fore nothing  shall  be  entered,  but  what  we  have  reason  to  believe  is 
true,  repairing  to  the  best  fountains  for  our  Information.  And  when 
there  appears  any  material  mistake  in  any  thing  that  is  collected,  it 
shall  be  corrected  in  the  next. 

Moreover,  the  Publisher  of  these  Occurrences  is  willing  to  engage, 
that  whereas,  there  are  many  False  Reports,  maliciously  made,  and 
spread  among  us,  if  any  well-minded  person  will  be  at  the  pains  to  trace 
any  such  false  Report,  so  far  as  to  find  out  and  Convict  the  First  Raiser 
of  it,  he  will  in  this  Paper  (unless  just  Advice  be  given  to  to  the  con- 
trary) expose  the  Name  of  such  person,  as  A  malicious  Raiser  of  a  false 
Report.  It  is  suppos'd  that  none  will  dislike  this  Proposal,  but  such  as 
intend  to  be  guilty  of  so  villanous  a  Crime. 

That  Christianized  Indians  in  some  parts  of  Plimouth,  have  newly 


PRECURSORS   OF   AMERICAN   NEWSPAPERS     11 

appointed  a  day  of  Thanksgiving  to  God  for  his  Mercy  in  supplying 
their  extream  and  pinching  Necessities  under  their  late  want  of  Corn, 
&  for  His  giving  them  now  a  prospect  of  a  very  Comfortable  Harvest. 
Their  Example  may  be  worth  Mentioning. 

Tis  observed  by  the  Husbandmen  that  altho'  the  With-draw  of  so 
great  a  strength  of  them,  as  what  is  in  the  Forces  lately  gone  for  Canada, 
made  them  think  it  almost  impossible  for  them  to  get  well  through  the 
Affairs  of  their  Husbandry  at  this  time  of  the  year,  yet  the  Season  has 
been  so  unusually  favourable  that  they  scarce  find  any  want  of  the 
many  hundreds  of  hands,  that  are  gone  from  them;  which  is  looked  upon 
as  a  Merciful  Providence. 

While  the  barbarous  Indians  were  lurking  about  Chelmsford,  there 
were  missing  about  the  beginning  of  this  month  a  couple  of  Children 
belonging  to  a  man  of  that  Town,  one  of  them  aged  about  eleven,  the 
other  aged  about  nine  years,  both  of  them  supposed  to  be  fallen  into 
the  hands  of  the  Indians. 

A  very  Tragical  Accident  happened  at  Water-Town,  the  beginning 
of  this  Month,  an  Old  man,  that  was  of  somewhat  a  Silent  and  Morose 
Temper,  but  one  that  had  long  Enjoyed  the  reputation  of  a  Sober  and 
Pious  Man,  having  newly  buried  his  Wife,  The  Devil  took  advantage 
of  the  Melancholy  which  he  thereupon  fell  into,  his  Wives  discretion 
and  industry  had  long  been  the  support  of  his  Family,  and  he  seemed 
hurried  with  an  impertinent  fear  that  he  should  now  come  to  want  be- 
fore he  dyed,  though  he  had  very  careful  friends  to  look  after  him  who 
kept  a  strict  eye  upon  him,  least  he  should  do  himself  any  harm.  But 
one  evening  escaping  from  them  into  the  Cowhouse,  they  there  quickly 
followed  him  found  him  hanging  by  a  Rope,  which  they  had  used  to  tye 
their  Calves  withal,  he  was  dead  with  his  feet  near  touching  the  Ground. 

Epidemical  Fevers  and  Agues  grow  very  common,  in  some  parts  of 
the  Country,  whereof,  tho'  many  dye  not,  yet  they  are  sorely  unfitted 
for  their  imployments;  but  in  some  parts  a  more  malignant  Fever  seems 
to  prevail  in  such  sort  that  it  usually  gores  thro'  a  Family  where  it  comes, 
and  proves  Mortal  unto  many. 

The  Small-pox  which  has  been  raging  in  Boston,  after  a  manner  very 
Extraordinary,  is  now  very  much  abated.  It  is  thought  that  far  more 
have  been  sick  of  it  then  were  visited  with  it,  when  it  raged  so  much 
twelve  years  ago,  nevertheless  it  has  not  been  so  Mortal.  The  number 
of  them  that  have  dyed  in  Boston  by  this  last  Visitation  is  about  three 
hundred  and  twenty,  which  is  not  perhaps  half  so  many  as  fell  by  the 
former.  The  Time  of  its  being  most  General,  was  in  the  Months  June, 
July,  and  August,  then  'twas  that  sometimes  in  some  one  Congregation 
on  a  Lords-day  there  would  be  Bills  desiring  prayers  for  above  an  hun- 
dred Sick.  It  seized  upon  all  sorts  of  people  that  came  in  the  way  of  it, 
it  infected  even  Children  in  the  bellies  of  Mothers  that  had  themselves 
undergone  the  Disease  many  years  ago  for  some  such  were  now  born 
full  of  the  Distemper.  'Tis  not  easy  to  relate  the  Trouble  and  Sorrow 


12         HISTORY   OF   AMERICAN   JOURNALISM 

that  poor  Boston  has  felt  by  this  Epidemical  Contagion.  But  we  hope 
it  will  be  pretty  nigh  Extinguished,  by  that  time  twelve  month  when 
it  first  began  to  Spread.  It  now  unhappily  spreads  in  several  other 
places,  among  which  our  Garrisons  in  the  East  are  to  be  reckoned  some 
of  the  greatest  Sufferers. 

Altho'  Boston  did  a  few  weeks  ago,  meet  with  a  Disaster  by  Fire, 
which  consumed  about  twenty  Houses  near  the  Mill-Creek,  yet  about 
midnight,  between  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  of  this  Instant,  an- 
other Fire  broke  forth  near  the  South-Meeting-House,  which  consumed 
about  five  or  six  houses,  and  had  almost  carried  the  Meeting  house  it 
self,  one  of  the  fairest  Edifices  in  the  Country,  if  God  had  not  remark- 
ably assisted  the  Endeavours  of  the  People  to  put  out  the  Fire.  There 
were  two  more  considerable  Circumstances  in  the  Calamities  of  this 
Fire,  one  was  that  a  young  man  belonging  to  the  House  where  the  Fire 
began,  unhappily  perished  in  the  Flames;  it  seems  that  tho'  he  might 
sooner  awake  than  some  others  who  did  escape,  yet  he  some  way  lost 
those  Wits  that  should  have  taught  him  to  help  himself.  Another  was 
that  the  best  furnished  PRINTING-PRESS,  of  those  few  that  we 
know  of  in  America  was  lost;  a  loss  not  presently  to  be  repaired. 

There  lately  arrived  at  Piscataqua,  one  Papoon  from  Penobscot,  in 
a  small  Shallop,  wherein  he  had  used  to  attend  upon  the  pleasure  of 
Casteen,  but  took  his  opportunity  to  run  away,  and  reports:  That  a 
Vessel  of  small  Bulk  bound  from  Bristol  to  Virginia,  having  been  so  long 
at  Sea,  till  they  were  prest  with  want,  put  in  at  Penobscot  instead  of 
Piscataqua,  where  the  Indians  and  French  seized  her,  and  Butchered 
the  Master,  and  several  of  the  men:  but  that  himself  who  belonged  unto 
the  Ships  Crew,  being  a  Jersey-man,  was  more  favourably  used,  &  found 
at  length  an  advantage  to  make  his  Escape. 

The  chief  discourse  of  this  month  has  been  about  the  affairs  of  the 
Western  Expedition  against  Canada.  The  Albanians,  New-Yorkers  and 
the  five  Nations  of  Indians,  in  the  West,  had  long  been  pressing  of  the 
Massachusetts  to  make  an  Expedition  by  Sea,  into  Canada,  and  still 
made  us  believe  that  they  stayed  for  us,  and  that  while  we  assaulted 
Quebeck,  they  would  pass  the  Lake,  and  by  Land  make  a  Descent  upon 
Mount  Real.  Accordingly  this  Colony  with  some  assistance  from  our 
kind  Neighbours  of  Plimouth;  fitted  an  Army  of  near  five  and  twenty 
hundred  men,  and  a  Navy  of  two  and  thirty  sail;  which  went  from 
hence  the  beginning  of  the  last  August,  under  the  Command  of  the 
Honourable  Sir  William  Phips. 

In  the  mean  time  the  English  Colonies  &  Provinces  in  the  West 
raised  Forces,  the  Numbers  whereof  have  been  reported  five  or  six  hun- 
dred. The  Honourable  General  Winthrop  was  in  the  Head  of  these, 
and  advanced  within  a  few  miles  of  the  Lake;  He  there  had  some  good 
number  of  Maqua's  to  joyn  his  Forces,  but  contrary  to  his  Expectation, 
it  was  found  that  the  Canoo's  to  have  been  ready  for  the  Transporta- 
tion of  the  Army  over  the  Lake,  were  not  prepared,  and  the  other  Na- 


PRECURSORS   OF   AMERICAN   NEWSPAPERS     13 

tions  of  Indians,  that  should  have  come  to  this  Campaign,  sent  their 
Excuses,  pretending  that  the  Small-pox  was  among  them,  and  some 
other  Trifles.  The  General  Meeting  with  such  vexing  disappointments, 
called  a  Councel  of  War,  wherein  'twas  agreed,  That  it  was  impossible 
for  them  to  Prosecute  their  Intended  Expedition.  However  he  dis- 
patched away  the  Maqua's  to  the  French  Territories,  who  returned 
with  some  Success,  having  slain  several  of  the  French,  and  brought 
home  several  Prisoners,  whom  they  used  in  a  manner  too  barbarous  for 
any  English  to  approve.  The  General  coming  back  to  Albany,  there 
happened  a  misunderstanding,  between  him  and  the  Lieutenant  Gov- 
ernour  of  New-york  which  occasioned  much  discourse,  but  produced 
not  those  effects  which  were  feared  of  it.  Where  lay  the  bottom  of  these 
miscarriages  is  variously  conjectured,  if  any  people  further  West  than 
Albany,  have  been  Tampering  with  the  Indians,  to  desert  the  business 
of  Canada,  we  hope  time  will  discover  it.  And  if  Almighty  God  will 
have  Canada  to  be  subdu'd  without  the  assistance  of  those  miserable 
Salvages,  in  whom  we  have  too  much  confided,  we  shall  be  glad,  that 
there  will  be  no  Sacrifice  offered  up  to  the  Devil,  upon  this  occasion; 
God  alone  will  have  all  the  Glory. 

'Tis  possible,  we  have  not  so  exactly  related  the  Circumstances  of 
this  business,  but  this  Account,  is  as  near  exactness,  as  any  that  could 
be  had,  in  the  midst  of  many  various  reports  about  it. 

Another  late  matter  of  discourse,  has  been  an  unaccountable  de- 
struction befalling  a  body  of  Indians,  that  were  our  Enemies.  This  body 
of  French  Indians  had  a  Fort  somewhere  far  up  the  River,  and  a  party 
of  Maqua's  returning  from  the  East  Country,  where  they  have  at  a 
great  rate  pursued  and  terrified  those  Indians  which  have  been  invad- 
ing of  our  North-East  Plantations,  and  Killed  their  General  Hope 
Hood  among  the  rest;  resolved  to  visit  this  Fort;  but  they  found  the 
Fort  ruined,  the  Canno's  cut  to  pieces,  and  the  people  all  either  Butch- 
ered or  Captived.  This  gave  them  no  little  surprise,  and  they  gave  the 
English  this  account  of  it.  That  a  body  of  Maqua's  lately  returning 
from  the  Spoil  of  Canada  brought  several  French  Prisoners  with  them; 
That  calling  at  this  Fort  in  their  way,  the  Indians  there  seeing  them- 
selves unable  to  resist  them  did  pass  divers  Complements  with  them 
and  partake  of  their  Booties,  That  a  French  Captive  after  this,  escap- 
ing from  the  Maqua's  informed  the  French  that  these  Indians  had  re- 
volted unto  the  Maqua's,  and  hereupon  the  French  or  their  Indians 
made  a  sudden  Sally  forth  upon  them,  and  utterly  destroyed  them, 
tho'  they  were  in  reality  of  their  own  party  still. 

Two  English  Captives  escaped  from  the  hands  of  Indians  and  French 
at  Pascadamoquady,  came  into  Portsmouth  on  the  sixteenth  Instant  & 
say,  That  when  Capt.  Mason  was  at  Fort  Real,  he  cut  the  faces,  and  ript 
the  bellies  of  two  Indians,  and  threw  a  third  Over  board  in  the  sight  of 
the  French,  who  informing  the  other  Indians  of  it,  they  have  in  revenge 
barbarously  Butcher'd  forty  Captives  of  our  that  were  in  their  hands. 


14        HISTORY   OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

These  two  Captives  escaped  in  a  Shallop,  which  our  Enemies  in- 
tended to  have  set  out  with  all  the  Circumstances  of  a  Fishing  Shallop 
but  to  have  indeed  fill'd  it  with  Indians  that  should  have  Claptd  on 
board  any  English  Vessel  that  came  in  their  way;  They  say  that  about 
three  or  four  weeks  ago,  some  Indians  were  coming  this  way  to  War,  but 
crossing  a  path  which  they  supposed  to  be  of  the  Maqua's,  they  fol- 
lowed it  until  they  discovered  a  place  where  some  Canoo's  were  making, 
whereupon  twenty  Kennebeck  Indian-Warriors  went  to  look  further 
after  the  business,  who  never  yet  returned.  Which  gives  hope  that  they 
may  come  short  home,  but  upon  this  the  Squaws  are  sent  to  Penobscot, 
and  the  men  stand  on  their  Defence. 

Portsmouth  Sept.  20th.  Two  days  since  arrived  here  a  small  Vessel 
from  Barbaboes,  in  which  is  a  Letter  to  Captain  H.  K.  of  19th  August 
that  speaks  thus, 

Christophers  is  wholly  taken  from  the  French  as  also  a  small  Island 
called  Stacia;  we  are  very  strong  in  Shipping,  and  our  Ships  of  War  are 
now  gone  for  Tobago,  a  very  good  place  to  shelter  from  any  Storms, 
after  the  suspicious  months  are  over,  they  will  attack  the  rest  of  the 
French  places.  We  have  News  here  that  K.  William  is  safe  arrived  in 
Ireland,  and  is  marched  with  one  hundred  and  forty  thousand  Foot 
and  Horse.  Himself  leads  the  Body,  Duke  Scomburgh  the  right  Wing, 
and  the  Earl  of  Oxford  the  left  Wing,  Duke  Hamilton  of  Scotland  leads 
the  forlorn  Hope  with  ten  thousand  men  under  him.  Great  victory 
they  dayly  have,  and  much  people  dayly  come  in  to  him,  with  submis- 
sion: He  has  200  Shipping  with  him  of  one  sort  or  other,  above  one  hun- 
dred Sail  dayly  run  between  Ireland  and  England,  with  meat  for  Man 
and  Beast;  His  Majesty  being  unwilling  to  trust  false  Ireland  for  it. 
France  is  in  much  trouble  (and  fear)  not  only  with  us  but  also  with 
his  Son,  who  has  revolted  against  him  lately,  and  has  great  reason  if 
reports  be  true,  that  the  Father  used  to  lie  with  the  Sons  Wife.  He  has 
got  all  the  Hugonots,  and  all  the  dissatisfied  Papists,  with  the  great 
force  of  the  D.  of  Lorraign,  and  are  now  against  him,  resolving  to  depose 
him  of  his  life  and  Kingdom. 

It's  Reported  the  City  of  Cork  in  Ireland,  has  proclaimed  K.  Wil- 
liam, and  turned  their  French  Landlords  out  of  Doors;  of  this  there 
wants  further  confirmation. 

From  Plimouth  Sept.  22.  We  have  an  Account  that  on  Friday  the 
12th  Instant,  in  the  night,  our  Forces  Landing  privately,  forthwith 
surrounded  Pegypscot  Fort;  but  finding  no  Indians  there,  they  March'd 
to  Amonoscoggin.  There  on  the  Lords-day,  they  kill'd  and  took  15  or 
16  of  the  Enemy,  and  recovered  five  English  Captives  mostly  belonging 
to  Oyster-River;  who  advised,  that  the  men  had  been  gone  about  ten 
days  down  to  a  River,  to  meet  with  the  French,  and  the  French  In- 
dians; where  they  expected  to  make  up  a  Body  of  300  men,  and  design 
first  against  Wells  or  Piscataqua. 

On  Tuesday,  the  Army  came  to  our  Vessels  at  Macquot,  but  one  of 


PRECURSORS   OF   AMERICAN   NEWSPAPERS     15 

the  Vessels  touching  a  Ground  stopt  a  Tide;  by  which  means,  young 
Bracket,  who  was  a  considerable  distance  up  the  River,  above  Amonos- 
coggin  Fort,  being  advised  by  an  Indian  that  ran  away  from  Amonos- 
coggin,  that  an  English  Army  was  there  attempted  his  Escape,  and 
came  down  to  the  Sloop,  just  as  they  came  on  their  Sail. 

On  Thursday,  they  landed  at  Saco;  a  Scout  of  60  men  of  ours  dis- 
cover a  party  of  the  Enemy,  and  had  the  Advantage  of  killing  three  of 
them,  and  taking  nine  Canoos,  and  an  English  captive  named,  Thomas 
Baker,  who  informed,  that  the  Enemy  had  left  a  considerable  Plunder 
at  Pegypscut-Plains,  which  he  supposed  the  Enemy  was  gone  to  secure. 
Whereupon  the  Army  immediately  embark'd,  and  arriving  there  that 
night,  the  next  morning  found  the  Bever-Plunder  accordingly. 

While  our  Vessels  where  at  Anchor  in  Cascoe-Bay,  our  Auxiliary 
Indians  lodging  on  shore,  and  being  too  careless  in  their  Watch,  the 
Enemy  made  an  Attaque  upon  them.  The  English  forth  with  repair'd 
to  their  Relief;  but  were  sorely  galled,  by  an  Embuscado  of  Indians, 
The  Enemy  soon  quitted  the  Field,  escaping  with  their  Canoo's,  whereof 
ours  took  several.  In  the  Surprise,  we  lost  9  men,  and  had  about  20 
wounded;  the  blow  chiefly  fell  on  our  dead  Friends,  the  Plimouth 
Forces;  15  being  kuTd  and  wounded  of  Captain  South  worth's 
Company. 

In  spite  of  the  fact  that  Publick  Occurrences  was  ordered  sus- 
pended, Benjamin  Harris  later  met  with  public  favor.  In  De- 
cember, 1692,  the  official  records  show  that  he  was  ordered  "to 
print  the  acts  and  laws  made  by  the  Great  and  General  Court, 
or  Assembly  of  their  Majesties  of  Massachusetts-Bay  in  New 
England."  Along  about  1695  he  returned  to  England  where  he 
became  the  publisher  of  The  London  Post. 

WEITTEN   AND   SPOKEN   NEWSPAPERS 

Substitutes  for  the  newspaper  were  found  in  two  rather  strik- 
ing places  —  the  public  tavern  and  the  local  church.  In  the 
former,  items  of  community  interest  were  freely  passed  along 
over  pipes  and  ale.  The  walls  of  the  tavern  were  frequently 
decorated  with  notices  of  what  to-day  appear  in  the  newspaper; 
some  in  the  advertising  columns,  others  in  the  text.  Foreign 
news  was  found  in  the  different  gazettes  for  which  the  tavern 
subscribed.  In  order  that  such  papers  might  be  available  for  the 
perusal  of  news,  a  notice  was  frequently  posted  to  the  effect  that 
persons  learning  to  read  would  please  use  old  copies  of  the  ga- 


\ 


16        HISTORY  OF   AMERICAN   JOURNALISM 

zettes.  In  some  sections  the  news  feature  in  the  tavern  was 
attraction.  At  Bridgeton,  New  Jersey,  a  written  newspaper 
called  The  Plain-Dealer  was  publicly  posted  at  "  Matthew  Pot- 
ter's Bar."  A  notice  informed  the  public  that  those  interested 
might  read  the  paper  by  calling  at  the  tavern  every  Tuesday 
morning.  Frequently,  however,  the  contents  of  The  Plain- 
Dealer  were  more  like  essays  than  news-items.  Issues,  how- 
ever, were  not  without  human  interest.  One  number,  for  ex- 
ample, discussed  " bundling  with  the  girls";  another  made  a 
special  plea  for  more  patriotism  on  the  part  of  the  Jersey  colo- 
nies. Whenever  a  colonial  farmer  visited  a  tavern,  he  always 
carried  the  news  away  --  possibly  along  with  other  things 
which  he  ought  not  to  have  had. 

America  has  not  been  without  its  spoken  newspaper.  The 
clergy  of  New  England  frequently  related  or  referred  to  items 
of  news.  The  bellman,  as  he  made  his  rounds,  sometimes  told 
other  things  besides  giving  the  hour  and  informing  the  public 
that  all  was  well.  The  spoken  newspaper  probably  reached  its 
highest  development  in  the  United  States  in  Detroit,  Michigan. 
The  Reverend  Father  Gabriel  Richard,  a  priest  of  the  Order  of 
Sulpice,  who  first  came  to  that  place  as  resident  pastor  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church  of  St.  Anne,  was  its  conductor.  To 
arouse  the  public  and  awaken  an  interest  in  the  affairs  of  the 
Government,  he  appointed  a  town  crier  who  every  Sunday  at 
the  doors  of  his  church  told  the  public  in  general  and  the  con- 
gregation in  particular  all  the  news  that  was  fit  to  speak.  In 
addition,  this  public  crier  mentioned  the  auction  sales  and 
related  other  advertising  announcements.  Later,  to  supplement 
the  spoken  newspaper,  a  written  edition  was  posted  at  a  con- 
venient place  near  the  church.  Father  Richard  was  assisted  in 
his  news  enterprise  by  Theopolis  Meetz,  the  sacristan  of  St. 
Anne's  Church,  but  later,  a  printer  and  publisher. 

The  evolution  of  journalism  in  America  has  been  much  the 
same  as  that  in  other  countries.  There  have  been  spoken  news- 
papers, written  newspapers,  and  later  printed  newspapers.  In 
other  words,  journalism  history  has  again  repeated  itself. 


CHAPTER  III 

THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  NEWSPAPER  —  THE  BOSTON 
NEWS-LETTER 

THE  action  of  the  Governor  of  Massachusetts  in  suppressing 
Publick  Occurrences  and  the  continued  opposition  of  the  Boston 
clergy  in  guarding  its  influence  prevented  any  attempt  to  found 
another  paper  until  1704.  The  chief  way  that  news  was  circu- 
lated, except  for  an  occasional  broadside,  was  through  pulpit 
announcements  and  semi-public  letters. 

CAMPBELL'S  WRITTEN  NEWS-LETTERS 

Foremost  among  these  writers  of  news-letters  was  one,  John 
Campbell,  the  postmaster  at  Boston.  He  made  a  practice  of 
sending  rather  regularly  letters  to  the  various  governors  of  the 
New  England  colonies.  These  letters,  after  being  read,  were 
passed  along  to  others  so  that  they  had  a  comparatively  wide 
circulation.  Sometimes  they  were  publicly  posted  so  that  their 
contents  might  be  read  after  the  manner  news  was  communi- 
cated in  ancient  Rome.  An  examination  of  the  Campbell  letters 
show  that  they  were  what  might  be  termed  written  newspapers. 
By  way  of  illustration,  the  following  one  is  reproduced  from 
"The  Proceedings  of  the  Massachusetts  Historical  Society":  — 

BOSTON  June  14th  1703 

On  the  8th  Instant  the  Assembly  was  adjourned  unto  the  Last  Wed- 
nesday of  this  month. 

On  the  O1.11  His  Excell.  being  Accompanyed  with  Severall  Gentlemen, 
went  to  his  Goverm*  of  New  hampshire. 

On  the  10th  a  Sloop  from  the  Bay  of  Campeachy  brings  no  News. 

On  the  11  EsqT  Bromfield  mett  w*h  a  Sore  Mischance,  coming  out 
of  his  Warehouse  door  a  Sloop  Lying  before  his  Warehouse  door  the 
m*  of  the  Sloop  noising  up  his  boom,  the  Sail  being  Loose  to  Dry  it, 
gave  Such  a  Swing  that  it  struct  him  upon  his  Shouldier,  Brock  his 
Collar  bone,  put  his  Shouldier  out  of  joynt,  was  for  sometime  speechless 
with  the  Stroak  but  its  hoped  He  '1  Recover  and  do  well  — 

On  the  12th  Arrived  a  Sloop  from  the  Bay  of  Vandovas,  one  Lamson 


18        HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 


Dead 


mr.,  who  sayes  that  Cap*  Wheeler  that  went  hence  for  Jamaica  is 
his  men  all  prest  on  board  men  of  warr  and  his  Ship  Hal'd  up. 

Cap*  Blew  from  R4  Island  is  arrived  here  this  Day. 

The  Gosport  and  Gaily  is  this  Day  sailed  for  Piscataqua. 

Philad.  May  28:  Arrived  a  Sloop  in  22  Dayes  from  Antegua  in  whom 
Came  Cap*  Roach  an  Inhabitant  of  that  Island  w1.11  his  family  to  Setle 
here,  brings  the  bad  news  of  our  forces  Leaving  Guardilup  untaken 
w*h  the  Loss  of  about  1000  by  Enemy  and  Sickness.  The  Day  (?he) 
Sailed  the  Gener1.1  Arrived  who  has  lost  his  Eye  Sight  w*h  Some  Dis- 
temper, the  rest  of  the  fleett  and  forces  were  Exspected  from  Guardi- 
loop,  the  Gene1.1  Layes  the  Miscarridge  so  to  heart  that  it's  thought 
he'l  hardly  Recover  upon  it. 

It's  said  that  the  men  of  warr  that  were  at  Guardiloop  were  all  or- 
dered home,  and  were  to  Sail  the  29t.h  may. 

Some  prisoners  that  made  then*  Escape  from  Martinico  to  Antegua 
Says  that  the  f rench  were  fitting  out  abundance  of  privateers  from  that 
place  many  of  them  Stout  Vessels. 

It's  reported  in  the  West  Indies  that  mons^  Ponti  was  daylie  Ex- 
spected there  wth  a  Squadron  of  men  of  warr  of  22  Sail  besydes  other 
Vessells. 

The  31  Arrived  here  a  Sloop  from  Jamaica  28  Dayes  passage,  Ad- 
mir1.1  Whetstone  wth  his  Squadron  was  at  Jamaica,  he's  done  nothing 
only  burnt  a  Ship  the  french  took  from  us  and  two  privateer  Sloops  at 
Pettiquavis. 

A  fleet  of  merchantmen  between  40  &  50  Sail  und?  Convoy  a  2  or  3 
men  of  warr  was  to  sail  in  May  from  Jamaica  to  England. 

N  Yorke  June  7:  Last  Week  Arrived  here  a  Sloop  from  Coraso,  21 
Dayes  passage  sayes  the  Dutch  have  an  open  Trade  wth  New  Spain  and 
that  the  Governour  of  Coraso  has  stopt  Cap*.  Wrightington  &  his 
Comp*  who  Sailed  from  R  Island  on  what  pretence  knows  not. 

Cap*.  Bond  &  Cap*.  Sinclair  Sails  in  a  fourth  Night  or  3  Week's  for 
London. 

Boston  Cap*.  Travise  sails  to  Day  or  Too  morrow  for  London  — 
(Superscribed) 

To  The  Honb!e 

John  Winthrop  EsqT 

GovT  of  Connecti 

ffranke  N  London 


CAMPBELL'S  PRINTED  NEWS-LETTERS 

So  numerous  were  the  requests  to  John  Campbell  for  extra 
news  advices  that  neither  he  nor  his  brother,  Duncan  Campbell, 
was  able  to  make  the  supply  equal  to  the  demand  simply  by  the 
pen.  He  was  forced  to  employ  the  printing-press.  His  first 


The  Boil  on  News-Letter. 


bp  2luti)o;it?. 


I  roiu 


fro:.) 


April  17.  to  fl$<M&a?    April  24.    1704. 


^J    to  4  .•/.•.     1703. 

Hirers  from  -V  /:.;«./  bring  ui  the  Copy  of 
a  bhcet  l-iiels  I'ruiud  there,  IntituUd,   ^ 

,     •rtll*iie  .i.'.   ».  !<•<    St.0ll.»tui         1:  .1    If.'lir 


•  Ctn::en.ei 


er  tj 


tie  C 

t.'t  f^ir.g.hm  f.>.J  it  i<  '  I'ictfiitl.t  Hrii£ten. 

I'his  Letf.-r  tAi-i  N^ia,  That  Papift*  fwarm  in 
tiir.t  Nation,  that  ihey  tratt'.^k  more  avowedly  than 
formerly,  Cs:  rlut  of  latr  m.my  bcores  of  PncUs  and 
jcfuttesarv  comeilmL;i  It  >:\\  F;.:w«,  and  gone  to 
th  Noah,  to  the  Hi^lu.u,^  c\  oti.^r  pL.ei  tl  the 
Country.  That  th-  .Miuidtri  of  the  Highliindi  and 
North  j;.\vc  in  laigo  Lifts  of  them  to  the  Commit- 
tv*c  of  i  he  Genci-1  Aflcmbly,  ro  br  hid  before  the 

it  likcwilc  obferves,  that  a  vjiv.it  Number  of  o- 
ther  ;!'  affeded  perfoits  .tre  come  over  from  Frame, 
Uv.dcr  pretence  of  accepting  hei  Majefty's  Gracious 


From  all  this  he  infers.  That  they  have  hoprs  of 
Albtttnce  iraa  t'^mt,  OthrrWife  they  would  never 
be  TJ  impuacnl  ,  and  he  givrs  Rc^fons  for  his  Ap- 
['rch<_nli(-nb  that  tlic  French  King  miy  Knd 
thirhtrrhis  U'mter,  i.  Becaule  the  E>%li/b  & 
will  not  then  be  at  Sea  to  cppofe  them.  i.  He  can 
then  bell  (pare  them,  the  Swfon  of  A6kio-i  beyond 
Set  being  over.  ?.  The  Expedition  given  h  m  of  a 
rrmfidtrable  number  to  jojn  them,  may  inc.juragr 
him  to  the  undertaking  with  fewer  Men  if  lie  can 
but  ftnd  over  a  iumciTnt  number  of  Officers  with 
Arms  and  Ammunition. 

He  endeavours  in  the  reft  of  his  Lerters  to  an- 
fwer  the  foulifli  Pretences  of  the  Pretender's  being  a 
Proteftant,  ^nd  trur  he  will  govern  us  according  to 
Law.  He  fays,  that  being  bred  up  in  the  Reli- 
Kion  and  Politicks  of  Fnnce,  he  is  by  Education  A 
Iht  cd  Enemy  to  our  Libcirv  and  Religion.  Tnat 
the  Obligations  which  ho  and  his  Family  owe  to 
nereiLrilv  make  him  to  be 


the  F 


vine,  niul 

wholly  at  his  Dcvoiicn,  and  to  follow  his-Example ; 

that  jf  he  fit  upon  the  TboHC,  the  three  Nations, 
,i  JICT  evident  from  matt  be  obli^'d  to  pay  the  Debt  which  he  owes  the 
in.-  Intcreil  of  the  !  Fitm.lt  King  for  the  Education  of  himfeJf,  and  for 
heir  lecret  Cabals,  ,  Entertaining  his  Jjppofed  Father  and  Its  Fatnily. 

And  fince  the  King  rauft  reftorr  him  by  Ais  Troops, 

if  ever  he  be    reftorec",   he    v/ill    lee  to    fecurq 


Inter  .  hy  ;  Ivr,  in  reality,  to  incrcafc  Divifions  in 
the  Nation,  and  to  cntrriain  u  Corrcfpondcnc'e  with 
/r.".cr.  T'MI  their  \'.\  Iment.cm  Jic:  evident  froa 
their  talking  big,  li-.^ir  owning 

pra'cndcd  King  Junn   VIII.  their  Iccrct  Cabals,  ,  Kntertaining  his  Jjppofed ...  _  _^__, 

a-nd  their  buying  v;p  of  Arrui  and   Armr.unuio::,  |  And  fince  the  King^nuft> reftorr  him  by  Ais  Troops, 
\vftcrever  they  can  fir 

To  tins'--  -JJ 
of  feme  d: 

tnW  ^ad  rather  embrace  Popfry  than  ronform  tc  !  rurricieiury  avcng'd,  but  by  the  utter 

.1     3        t-         ,-.  ^i         'i ...il.j^  »«   «>«.ni.      i>- ^»../l-  ..  c..L:..Ts...    i v      "   T»    •   i 


r  they  can  fine  them.  I  if   ever  he  be    reflored,   he    v/ill    lee  to    fecurq 

is  h?  adds  the  Uie  Writings  and  A£_nfcj  I  his  own  Debt  before  chofc  Troops  leave  BtitMiri, 
i:(aftedted  perli,  .i,  ii.a.ny  of  \vlv>r/.  :UT  tor  j  Thr  Prc wilder  being  a  good  Proficient  iuihe  French 
cTtAfr,  rh^r  frv  «1  of  (hem  h»w  tlecUr'H  ,  «nd  P^^.fh  Schoolis,  !.v  ,,'Jl  uc*u  il/inlc.  Km.telf 


prclcnt  Government ,  diat-ihey  reluie  to  pray 
for  the  Queen,  hut  uu-  the  ambiguous  word  Sove 
hiign,  and"  fouic  of  them  pray  in  expirfs  \Vo-xis  for 
'he  King  ar.o  Royal  F-mily  •  and  chc  dunubie 
and  ccnerous  Prince  who  liis  (he'v'd  chem  fo  rau^r 
He  iikewifc  takes  notice  of  Letrei-s  not 


long  ago   found    in    Cypher,    and  directed  tc  .1 
Pcrion  lately  come  thither  »roin  x.  ^trmunt. 
He  fiys  that  the  greateft  Jacobites,  who  wltt  not 


Protf:fta)ir  Subjects,  botl-  isllcrctlcks  '  if,id  T>«\rors. 
The  ULC  Quctn,  his  pretended  Mother,  who  In 
(old  Blooci  when  (he  was  £<<««  of  B.-iisii^  ^«fvnw 
tntttrnihr  V'eftof  i.«r/x,^  into  a  nunc!nir"^ie)d 
wii'bethtm  for  doing  To  by  the  jrcateit  part 
Nation  .  and,  no  doubt,  iS  at  P4JiM  to  ' 


tended  Sop  educated  to  Her  owi- 


er 


htfa\s,  it  wne  agrca».  iVUcuxefs  Jo  'the  Nation  to 

...  .     0 ,  ..    lakcaP-.V.ce  bred  up  ir/  the  hornd School  a;"b>prjt» 

flualilv;  tiheaifciyes  by  taking  rhcC.'aths  loHerMa-  i  titudc.    PtrOcution  and  Cruelty:  'and  filled  vvitH 
jellv^  do  r.o»v  ^vith  thr  Fapift'  ,m^  cneu  Compaui-  1  ^•'•"^c  and  Et»vy      Tti^.  jf*c«£*/«f  h«  Jarv  bclh  »n 


ons  frombr.  G')»MJO>  i"--!  up  roi  vht  Liberty  o:  the  I  Scot^ana  and   at  Sr 

Subic£i,  comrary  10  th-;ir  own  Principles,  but  rncer-    their  i>rereut  iryaitj,    and       ,  .._^ 

l«-  to  keep  up  a  iDivifion  iu  the  Nanon     He  artdsj    ftanccs  crnnot  br  »nuch  worifc    lhaa  tv»ej 

iriat  ihey  3rjgra\  me  ihofe  t  Dings  which  the  People    preienc,  arfthe  more  inclinable  t^lheliinr 

complain  o..  as  to  EnfltuSt  iefuGug  to  allow  them    He  adds,    Fh^r  tde  F.er,cb  Kniff  knov».i  ^tt  ca) 

*  f.ceaomof  T-adc..  &'.  ind  Ho  all  rhry  can  to  fo-  !  be  a  more  effectual   way  fov  bmirif  toUrjiWii 

pen'  Pivifions  b<  rwixt  the  .vaoons^aad  to  obftrurt  I  Univer'.ai  Monarchy,  and  to.-«tanc  flijt  protf! 


;  vf  ihofc  things  conplain'd"  ot  inicrefi.  char  by  krtsnj  up  thfcy.'elcnd^upor?  the 

.  The  Jacobites,  he  fays,  dc  uli  they  can  to  pci--  Th'ofit  o>  Gr<Mi  P..V/II/JV  fie  will  !n  a^l'  '.pfobarjility 
Cwadt  the  Nation  that  theii  pretended  King  is  a  I  attempc  u ,  i  nd  I'nn  he  fhnuld  be  pcrfv/edrd  thai 
jProcelrant  in  his  Heait  tho'  lu-  ciarrs  nor  declare  it  j  -"he  Oc!ign  w-oulc.  ^ntc.^y  in  the  clofc'  yct.bf  ^sui- 
>¥hilc  uodcr  the  Power  of  Frr.n-t  ,  that  he  is  ac  .  net  t»vt  .-.  x^  iome  A4va;i{xgP  by  tmbr^iiir.g  «v.e 
with  the  Miftakc';  ot  h;s  Father's  Go- .  cbret '\>u'>i\s. 


vernrnept,  will  govern  us  rr.or^  ac'.ording  -:o  Law.!      Ft>m  a"  .•",$  h    Aurhftr\C?}fic!ucicsrk  lobe  iht 
0n4  endear  bimlelf  to  his  Subje^s.  Jrtcjrft  oi  khf  Kl;uioa,  ro  pr.^dei  for  541J  defenae; 

.Tjiey  magnifie  the  Stren^ch  of  theii  own  Pa^vJ  and  i»y»,    "hat  a*  many  rav6  -^Hvf  taken. rfv 
aJitl  the  Weaknefs  and,  Divifions  of  the  other,  m    Alarm,  and  are  fumiiljng  ijvet 


facilitate  and  haften  their  Undertaking  , 
ihcy  argue  themfelvcs  our  of  their  Fears,  and  into 
the  higheft  aJTurance  of  accomplishing  their  purpose. 


and  Ammunition,  he 
notom?  allow  it,  bu^  t 
on  ought  all  to  appear  „ 


FIRST    ISSUE   OF 


THE   BOSTON 

(Reduced) 


U,  (IRCC  th«r Nj.il- 
:'}» tfitf.ffcfenc* 
o. 
NEWS-LETTER 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAN   NEWSPAPER 

printed  news-letter  appeared  Monday  April  24,  1704,  and  was, 
called  The  Boston  News-Letter.  It  was  printed  on  both  sides  of 
a  half -sheet  folio,  7  x  Hi  inches.  Because  it  was  dated  "From 
Monday  April  17  to  Monday  April  24,  1704,"  several  writers 
on  colonial  journalism  have  erroneously  set  down  the  first  date 
as  that  on  which  number  one  of  volume  one  of  the  first  Ameri- 
can newspaper  was  published.  There  were  two  editions  of  this 
first  issue,  for  a  typographical  difference  is  found  in  the  three 
copies  that  have  been  preserved.  The  copy  of  the  New  York 
Historical  Society  and  that  of  the  American  Antiquarian  So- 
ciety are  alike,  while  the  third,  that  of  the  Massachusetts  His- 
torical Society,  is  clearly  a  second  edition.  (Harvard  Univer- 
sity has  a  piece  torn  from  the  first  issue.) 

The  publisher's  announcement  was  in  the  nature  of  an  ad- 
vertisement. It  read  as  follows :  — 

This  News-Letter  is  to  be  continued  Weekly;  and  all  Persons  who 
have  any  Houses,  Lands,  Tenements,  Farmes,  Ships,  Vessels,  Goods, 
Wares  or  Merchandizes,  EC.  to  be  Sold,  or  Lett;  or  Servants  Runaway; 
or  Goods  Stoll  or  Lost,  may  have  the  same  Inserted  at  a  Reasonable 
Rate;  from  Twelve  Pence  to  Five  Shillings,  and  not  to  exceed:  Who 
may  agree  with  Nicholas  Boone  for  the  same  at  his  Shop,  next  door  to 
Major  Davis's,  Apothecary  in  Boston,  near  the  Old  Meeting-House. 

All  Persons  in  Town  and  Country  may  have  said  News-Letter  Weekly 
upon  reasonable  terms,  agreeing  with  John  Campbell  Post-Master  for 
the  same. 

The  early  issues  of  this  printed  newspaper  differed  little  from 
its  written  predecessors  save  that  they  had  extracts  from  English 
papers.  That  of  Number  1,  for  example,  had  an  extract  from 
The  London  Flying  Post  (December  2  to  4,  1703)  about  "a  pre- 
tender, called  King  James  VIII  of  Scotland,  sending  Popish 
missioners  from  France  to  Scotland,"  and  another  from  The 
London  Gazette  (December  16  to  20,  1703)  about  "a  most  gra- 
cious speech  made  by  Her  Majesty  to  both  Houses." 

CONTENTS   OF  FIRST  ISSUE 

For  the  sake  of  comparison  with  Publick  Occurrences  all  the 
American  items  of  the  first  issue  are  reproduced:  - 

Boston,  April,  18  Arrived  Capt.  Sill  from  Jamacia  about  4  Weeks 
Passage,  says  they  continue  there  very  Sickly.  Mr.  Nathaniel  Oliver 


20         HISTORY   OF   AMERICAN   JOURNALISM 

a  principal  Merchant  of  this  place  died  April  15  &  was  decently  inter'd 
April,  18.  ^Etatis  53. 

The  Honourable  Col.  Nathanael  Byfield  Esq.  is  Commissioned  Judge 
of  the  Admiralty  for  the  Provinces  of  Massachusetts-Bay,  New-Hamp- 
shire and  Rhod-Island.  And  Thomas  Newton  Esq.  Judge-Deputy  for 
the  Colony  of  Massachusetts-Bay. 

The  20.  the  Rd.  Mr.  Pemberton  Preach'd  an  Excellent  Sermon  on  1 
Thes.  4.  11.  And  do  your  own  business:  Exhorting  all  Ranks  &  Degrees 
of  Persons  to  do  their  own  work,  in  order  to  a  REFORMATION :  which 
His  Excellency  has  ordered  to  be  Printed. 

The  21.  His  Excellency  Dissolved  the  Gen.  Assembly. 

Rhode-Island  22.  The  Rd.  Mr.  Lockyer  dyed  on  Thurs.  last 

Capt.  Toungrello  has  taken  Five  Prizes  off  of  Curraso,  one  of  which 
is  come  in  to  Rhode-Island  mostly  Loaden  with  Cocco,  Tobacco,  Li- 
quors &c.  She  is  a  Curraso  Trader,  as  all  the  rest  were.  One  of  the 
Five  was  one  Larew  a  French-man,  a  Sloop  of  8  Guns  &  8  Patteraro's 
76  Men,  Fought  him  Board  and  Board  three  Glasses;  Capt.  Larew  was 
kill'd,  and  20  of  his  Men  kill'd  &  wounded:  Capt.  Toungrello  wounded 
thro'  the  Body;  and  five  of  his  men,  but  none  kill'd,  he  had  but  40 
Fighting  Men,  when  he  took  Larew. 

The  18  Currant,  came  in  a  Sloop  to  this  Port  from  Virginia,  the  Mas- 
ter informed  Governour  Cranston  Esq.  he  was  Chased  by  a  Top-sail 
Shallop  off  of  Block-Island,  which  he  judged  to  be  a  French  Privateer, 
and  that  there  was  two  other  Vessels  in  her  Company,  which  he  judged 
to  be  her  Prizes.  Whereupon  his  Honour  being  concerning  for  the  Pub- 
lick  Weal  and  Safety  of  Her  Majesties  good  Subjects,  immediately 
caused  the  Drum  to  beat  for  Voluntiers,  under  the  Command  of  Capt. 
Wanton,  and  in  3  or  four  hours  time,  Fitted  and  Man'd  a  Brigantine, 
with  70  brisk  young  men  well  Arm'd,  who  Sail'd  the  following  Night, 
returning  last  Evening,  and  gave  his  Honour  an  Account,  that  they 
found  the  aforesaid  Shallop,  with  one  other,  and  a  Ketch  at  Tarpolian 
Cove,  who  were  all  Fishing  Vessels  belonging  to  Marblehead  or  Salem,  who 
were  Fishing  off  of  Block-Island,  one  of  them  was  a  French  built  Shallop 
with  a  Topsail,  which  gave  the  great  suspician  that  they  were  Enemies. 

New- York,  April,  17.  By  a  Barque  from  Jamacia,  (last  from  Bar- 
muda,  7  Weeks  Passage,)  says,  there  was  an  Imbargo  in  that  Island  sev- 
eral Months,  occasioned  by  News  they  had  of  a  design  the  French  & 
Spaniards  had,  to  make  a  descent  upon  them:  She  came  out  with  the 
Homeward  bound  London  Fleet,  who  are  gone  home  without  Convoy. 

Capt.  Davison  in  the  Eagle  Gaily,  Sailes  for  London,  in  a  Month,  if 
the  Virginia  Fleet  stays  so  long;  he  intends  to  keep  them  Company 
Home,  if  not,  to  run  for  it,  being  Built  for  that  Service. 

Philadelphia,  April,  14.  An  Account  that  the  Dreadnaught  Man  of 
War  was  Arrived  in  Marryland. 

N.  London,  April,  20.  The  Adventure,  A  Vessell  60  Tuns,  will  Sail 
from  thence  to  London,  in  three  Weeks  or  a  Months  time. 


THE   FIRST   AMERICAN   NEWSPAPER  21 

The  issue  on  March  7,  1728,  published  the  following  item 
about  Campbell's  death :  — 

On  Monday  Evening  last  the  4th  Currant  at  8  a-Clock,  died,  John 
Campbell,  Esq;  Aged  75  years,  former  Post  Master  in  the  Place,  Pub- 
lisher of  the  Boston  News-Letter,  for  many  years,  and  One  of  His 
Majesties  Justices  of  the  Peace  for  the  County  of  Suffolk. 

Such  a  notice  does  scant  justice  to  the  man  who  founded  the 
first  regular  newspaper  in  the  British  colonies  of  North  Amer- 
ica. Because  so  little  has  been  written  about  the  service  he  ren- 
dered American  journalism  something  more  should  be  said  than 
that  he  was  simply  editor  "  for  many  years  "  of  The  Boston  News- 
Letter. 

CAMPBELL   AND   HIS   PAPER 

John  Campbell  was  of  Scotch  ancestry,  coming  to  Boston 
about  the  year  1692.  He  was  a  son  of  Duncan  Campbell.  His 
brother,  also  Duncan,  was  a  bookseller  and  was  at  one  time 
postmaster  of  Boston.  In  fact,  John  Campbell  succeeded  his 
brother  in  that  office. 

It  is  seen  from  the  material  between  the  lines  of  his  News- 
Letter  that  John  Campbell  was  practical  and  purposeful.  No 
useless  words  appeared  in  his  announcement  of  the  first  issue  — 
no  promises  of  what  the  publisher  intended  to  do.  No  adver- 
tisement costing  over  five  shillings  was  to  be  inserted.  That  he 
did  not  enlarge  on  matter  is  proved  in  the  copy  of  March  18 
to  25,  1706,  "On  Thursday  night  last,  Sampson  Waters,  a 
Young  man  went  well  to  Bed,  and  was  found  dead  next  morn- 
ing." Nothing  more! 

Campbell  was  a  man  who  could  wax  indignant  over  dishon- 
esty. This  fact  is  shown  in  his  editorial  in  The  News-Letter  of 
July  24  to  31, 1704,  in  regard  to  the  arrest  of  a  band  of  counter- 
feiters and  the  seizure  of  their  plate  and  press.  He  also  made 
many  telling  comments  on  immorality  and  profaneness  (Octo- 
ber 30  to  November  6,  1704).  In  the  issue  of  August  6  to  13, 
1705,  he  concludes  an  obituary  notice  of  a  suicide  with,  "She 
was  esteemed  to  be  a  Person  of  a  Pious  and  Sober  Conversa- 
tion: And  we  hope  the  Inserting  of  such  an  awful  Providence 


22         HISTORY   OF   AMERICAN   JOURNALISM 

here  may  not  be  offensive,  but  rather  a  Warning  to  all  others  to 
watch  against  the  wiles  of  our  Grand  Adversary." 

His  subtle  sense  of  humor  is  proven  in  The  News-Letter  of 
November  5  to  12,  1705,  in  regard  to  one  Henry  Burch,  a 
Quaker:  "Only,  that  he  may  have  his  NAME  a  little  stick  to 
him  (and  because  he  told  us,  you  know,  that  he  had  been  at 
AMSTERDAM)  we  will  Humbly  move,  that  if  the  Authority 
see  meet,  it  may  be  LAID  ON  after  the  DUTCH-fashion;  that 
is  with  good  BURCHEN  RODS,  Tho'  such  dealing  may  be  too 
easy  for  such  a  SKEELUM  to  meet  withal." 

Sarcasm  came  easily  from  his  pen.  To  quote  from  his  account 
of  some  French  and  Indian,  and  English  encounters,  "And  that 
notwithstanding  the  negligence  of  our  People,  they  do  acknowl- 
edge to  have  lost  Two  of  their  principal  French  Officers,  and  50 
French  &  Indians  in  the  action."  Or  to  quote  Campbell's  words 
after  his  removal  from  the  postmastership  of  Boston  in  regard 
to  the  establishment  of  The  Boston  Gazette,  by  William  Brooker, 
the  new  postmaster,  "I  pity  the  readers  of  the  new  paper;  its 
sheets  smell  stronger  of  beer  than  of  midnight  oil.  It  is  not  read- 
ing fit  for  people!" 

On  the  other  hand,  he  was  public-spirited  and  appreciative 
of  good  work.  In  The  News-Letter  of  June  3  to  10,  1706,  Camp- 
bell wrote:  "There  are  two  things  therefore  which  I  shall  chiefly 
recommend  to  your  care,  one  is  the  providing  a  Fund  for  the 
Fortifying  this  City;  the  other  is,  the  providing  a  Fund  for  the 
Repairing  this  Her  Majesties  Fort,  which  is  extreamly  out  of 
Order,  and  for  mounting  the  Guns,  most  of  the  Carriages  being 
rotten  and  unserviceable.  And  you  may  be  sure,  that  whatso- 
ever you  shall  think  fit  to  give,  shall  be  applied  to  the  Uses  for 
which  you  give  it,  and  to  no  other."  In  another  place  he  said: 
"I  cannot  conclude  without  putting  you  in  mind  of  the  neces- 
sity of  making  provision  for  Out-scouts  this  next  Winter,  to  be 
sent  from  ALBANY."  He  spoke  with  appreciation  of  the  in- 
habitants of  the  Town  of  Milton  freely  offering  their  services,  at 
a  time  of  the  year  when  laborers  were  very  difficult  to  be  got  even 
for  wages,  "to  their  Reverend  Minister,  Mr.  Peter  Thacher,  to 
cut  down  his  Grass,  to  make  his  Hay,  and  to  carry  it  into  his 
Barn,  and  to  their  praise  and  commendation  be  it  spoken:  On 


THE   FIRST   AMERICAN   NEWSPAPER          23 

Monday  last  there  was  no  less  in  his  Field  than  26  men  Mowers 
in  a  Breast,  and  on  Wednesday  there  was  14  others  that  were 
Rakers;  and  on  Thursday  16  more,  and  no  doubt  there  was  a 
competent  number  on  Friday  and  Satturday  (though  not  come 
to  our  knowledge)  to  carry  it  into  the  Barn." 

John  Campbell  had  a  very  decided  belief  in  the  continuity  of 
foreign  news.  At  one  time  he  announced,  with  as  much  regret 
as  simplicity,  that  he  was  "thirteen  months  behind  in  giving  the 
news  from  Europe."  The  number  for  November  25  to  Decem- 
ber 2,  1706,  opens  with  an  editorial  note,  introducing  the  for- 
eign news:  "According  to  our  usual  manner  (on  the  Arrival  of 
Ships  from  England,  Portugal,  or  by  the  West-India  Pacquets) 
we  gave  you  in  our  Last,  a  Summary  of  the  most  Remarkable 
Occurrences  of  Europe  for  six  weeks  time,  viz  from  the  1st  of 
August,  to  the  15th  of  September  last;  And  now  we  must  pro- 
ceed to  the  more  particular  Account  of  the  Foreign  Occurrences 
where  we  left  off;  So  that  any  one  having  this  Print  for  the  year, 
will  be  furnished  not  only  with  the  Occurrences  of  Europe,  the 
West-Indies,  but  also  those  of  this  and  the  Neighbouring  Prov- 
inces." 

If  Campbell  did  not  show  enterprise  in  his  treatment  of  for- 
eign news,  his  domestic  news  service  in  later  issues  may  be  con- 
sidered a  little  more  up-to-date.  For  the  most  part  it  consisted 
of  "ship  news,  the  governor's  proclamations,  reports  of  the  elec- 
tions of  representatives  to  the  General  Court,  accounts  of  en- 
gagements with  the  Indians  or  with  the  French  privateers,  news 
from  the  West  Indies,  Nova  Scotia,  Newfoundland,  Maine, 
New  Hampshire,  Rhode  Island,  Connecticut,  and  New  York 
and  occasionally  from  far-away  Philadelphia,  or  farther  away 
South  Carolina."  Remarkable  incidents  in  neighboring  towns 
were  occasionally  printed.  Skippers  sailing  between  Boston 
and  the  West  Indies  or  ports  of  the  other  colonies  were  his 
reporters  of  adventure  stories. 

He  obtained  news  by  letter;  the  accounts  of  Indian  operations 
in  the  Connecticut  Valley,  and  "to  the  Eastward,"  came  in  let- 
ters from  Colonel  Church  who  was  commander  of  the  colonial 
forces;  by  adventurers  returning  from  the  South,  as  in  Septem- 
ber 4  to  11,  1704,  "By  some  gentlemen  arrived  here  last  Week 


24        HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN   JOURNALISM 

from  MARYLAND,  we  have  the  following  Account ";  or,  in 
November  20  to  27,  1704,  "In  the  domestic  news  is  a  report  by 
an  express  from  Albany  to  New  York,  as  brought  by  an  Indian 
from  Canada,  of  preparations  in  Canada  for  a  French  and  Indian 
winter  attack  upon  some  point  in  the  colonies  not  named." 
Later,  packet-boats  helped  in  gathering  both  foreign  and  domes- 
tic news:  "  Her  Majesty  Hath  Settled  Packet-Boats  for  the  West- 
Indies,  who  are  to  go  from  Plimouth  at  the  beginning  of  every 
Month  throughout  the  Year,  no  accident  preventing  the  same; 
who  are  to  touch  and  stay  at  each  of  the  English  Island-Plan- 
tations in  the  following  manner  —  And  thence  to  Return  to 
England,  and  not  to  be  stayed  on  any  pretence  whatsoever." 
In  the  issue  of  February  3  to  10,  1706,  there  is  a  statement  of 
three  definite  post-routes;  "All  the  Three  Posts  are  now  in,  the 
Eastern  and  Southern  to  go  out  on  Monday  night  the  10th 
Currant,  in  order  to  return  on  Satturday  next;  and  the  Western 
Post  to  set  out  then  also  in  order  to  return  on  Saturday  the  22d 
Instant  and  then  to  set  out  on  the  Monday  following  the  24th 
Currant,  to  go  and  come  once  a  week  as  the  other  Posts  do." 

FIRST  EXTRA 

Campbell  showed  great  enterprise  in  his  handling  of  an  execu- 
tion on  the  Charles  River.  Six  pirates  were  executed  on  Friday, 
June  30,  1704.  The  description  of  the  scene,  the  "exhortations 
to  the  malefactors,"  and  the  prayer  made  by  one  of  the  minis- 
ters after  the  pirates  were  on  the  scaffold,  "as  near  as  it  could  be 
taken  in  writing  in  the  great  crowd,"  filled  nearly  one-half  of 
the  paper. 


LATER   PUBLISHERS 

Incidentally,  it  may  be  remarked  that  The  Boston  News-Letter 
was  first  printed  by  Bartholomew  Green  in  a  small  wooden  build- 
ing on  Newberry  Street.  Eighteen  years  later  Green  himself 
became  the  owner  and  publisher  of  the  paper.  To  quote  from 
the  issue  for  December  31,  1722:  - 

These  are  to  give  Notice,  That  Mr.  Campbell,  Designing  not  to  Pub- 
lish any  more  News-Letters,  after  this  Monday  the  31st  Currant,  Bar- 


THE   FIRST  AMERICAN   NEWSPAPER          25 

tholomew  Green  the  Printer  thereof  for  these  18  Years  past,  having  had 
Experience  of  his  Practice  therein;  intends  (Life  permitted)  to  carry  on 
the  same,  (using  his  Method  on  the  Arrival  of  Vessels  from  Great  Bri- 
tain, &c.,  to  give  a  Summary  of  the  most  Remarkable  Occurrences  of 
Europe,  and  afterwards  the  Thread  of  the  News,)  provided  he  can  have 
due  Encouragement  by  competent  Numbers  taking  it  by  the  Year,  so 
as  to  enable  him  to  defray  the  necessary  Charges.  And  all  those  who 
have  a  Mind  (either  in  Town  or  Country)  to  Promote  and  Encourage 
the  Continuation  of  the  abovesaid  Intelligence,  are  hereby  desired  to 
Agree  with  the  said  Green,  either  by  Word  or  Writing;  who  may  have  it 
on  reasonable  Terms,  left  at  any  House  in  Town,  Sealed  or  Unsealed. 

In  the  meantime,  another  room  had  been  added  to  the  print- 
ing-house for  the  use  of  the  son,  Bartholomew  Green,  Jr.  Janu- 
ary 30,  1734,  the  building  burned,  being  occupied  at  the  time 
by  the  son  and  his  brother-in-law,  John  Draper,  each  of  whom 
had  his  own  plant.  Draper  put  up  a  new  structure  which  on  his 
death,  December  6,  1762,  passed  to  his  son,  Richard  Draper. 
It  was  used  as  a  printing-house  until  the  British  evacuated  Bos- 
ton in  1776  and  The  News-Letter  was  discontinued.  For  almost 
threescore  and  ten  years,  The  Boston  News-Letter  was  printed 
at  this  same  spot  on  Newberry  Street.  Four  years  during  the 
editorship  or  authorship  of  Campbell,  1707-1711,  the  paper  was 
printed  elsewhere  by  John  Allen. 

When  The  News-Letter  passed  into  the  hands  of  Bartholomew 
Green,  he  tried  to  give  its  readers  what  they  wanted  by  making 
the  paper  semi-religious  in  character.  In  an  announcement  from 
the  publisher  he  says  on  January  21,  1723:  — 

It  being  my  Desire  to  make  this  as  profitable  and  entertaining  to  the 
good  people  of  this  country  as  I  can,  I  propose  to  give  not  only  the  most 
material  articles  of  intelligence,  both  foreign  and  domestic,  which  con- 
cern the  political  state  of  the  world ;  but  also  because  this  is  a  country, 
that  has  yet,  through  the  mercy  of  God,  many  people  in  it,  that  have 
the  State  of  religion  in  the  world  very  much  at  heart,  and  would  be  glad, 
if  they  knew  how  to  order  their  prayers  and  praises  to  the  Great  God 
thereupon,  I  shall  endeavour,  now  and  then,  to  insert  an  article  upon 
the  state  of  religion.  I  shall,  therefore,  from  time  to  time,  wait  upon 
such  as  I  may  know  to  cultivate  a  correspondence  with  the  most  emi- 
nent persons  in  several  nations,  who  may  please  to  communicate  with 
me,  and  thereby  to  the  public,  such  things  as  all  good  men  cannot  but 
receive  with  satisfaction. 


26        HISTORY   OF  AMERICAN   JOURNALISM 


Whenever  Green  printed  any  special  news  item  he  was  pretty 
sure  to  add  some  reflection  of  a  religious  character.  By  way  of 
illustration,  Buckingham  gave  the  following:  — 

Yesterday,  being  the  Lord's-Day,  the  Water  flowed  over  our  Wharffs 
and  into  our  streets  to  a  very  surprizing  height.  They  say  the  Tide 
rose  20  Inches  higher  than  ever  was  known  before.  The  Storm  was 
very  strong  at  North-East.  The  many  great  Wharffs,  which  since  the 
last  overflowing  Tydes  have  been  run  out  into  the  Harbour,  and  fill'd 
so  great  a  part  of  the  Bason,  have  methinks  contributed  something  not 
inconsiderable  to  the  rise  of  the  Water  upon  us.  But  if  it  be  found  that 
in  other  Places  distant  from  us,  and  where  no  such  reason  as  this  here 
given  can  have  place,  the  waters  have  now  risen  in  like  proportion  as 
they  did  with  us;  then  we  must  attribute  very  little  to  the  reason  above 
suggested.  The  loss  and  damage  sustained  is  very  great,  and  the  little 
Image  of  an  Inundation  which  we  had,  look'd  very  dreadful.  It  had 
been  a  great  favour  to  the  town,  if  upon  the  first  Rising  of  the  Waters  in 
the  Streets,  which  hapn'd  in  the  time  of  the  Fore-noon  Service,  some 
discreet  Persons  had  in  a  grave  and  prudent  manner  inform' d  some  or 
other  of  the  Congregations  of  it;  that  such  whose  Houses  &  Stores  lay 
most  exposed  might  have  repair'd  timely  to  them.  The  reason  in  this 
case  seems  the  same  as  if  there  had  been  a  Fire  in  the  Town.  Let  us 
fear  the  GOD  of  heaven,  who  made  the  sea  and  the  dry  land,  who 
commandeth  &  raiseth  the  stormy  wind,  which  lifteth  up  the  waves; 
who  ruleth  the  raging  of  the  sea,  and  when  the  waves  thereof  arise,  He 
stilleth  them. 

SIAMESE  TWINS  OF  JOURNALISM 

John  Draper,  to  whom  the  management  of  the  paper  fell  in 
1733,  tried  to  follow  in  the  footsteps  of  his  father-in-law  by  con- 
tinuing this  semi-religious  editorial  policy.  On  Draper's  death 
in  1762,  his  soji  Richard  became  the  publisher.  One  of  his  acts 
was  to  change  the  name  to  that  of  The  Boston  Weekly  News- 
Letter  and  New-England  Chronicle.  Not  satisfied  with  this,  he 
tried  The  Massachusetts  Gazette  and  Boston  News-Letter.  When 
he  acquired  The  Boston  Post-Boy  in  1768  he  ran  what  has  been 
called  the  Siamese  Twins  in  journalism.  The  union  was  called 
The  Massachusetts  Gazette,  but  each  paper  continued  separate 
publication :  the  twin  papers  came  out  on  Monday  and  on  Thurs- 
day; the  first  half  of  the  paper  on  each  day  was  The  Gazette  and 
was  the  official  organ  of  the  Government  to  publish  the  laws, 
etc.;  the  second  half  was  The  Post-Boy  on  Monday  and  The 


THE   FIRST   AMERICAN  NEWSPAPER  27 

News-Letter  on  Thursday.  This  singular  arrangement  lasted 
from  May  23,  1768,  till  September  25,  1769.  Draper,  separating 
the  twin  sheets,  kept  alive  only  The  News-Letter.  On  his  death, 
June  6,  1774,  his  widow  and  his  partner,  John  Boyle,  conducted 
the  paper.  A  little  later,  John  Howe  purchased  Boyle's  interest 
and  together  with  Mrs.  Draper  ran  the  paper  until  some  time 
between  September  7  and  October  13,  1775,  when  Howe  con- 
ducted it  alone  until  its  suspension  in  1776.  The  last  known 
issue  was  on  February  22  of  that  year. 

END   OF   NEWS-LETTER 

In  this  way  The  Boston  News-Letter  had  a  continuous  exist- 
ence for  practically  seventy-two  years.  Loyal  to  the  Home 
Government,  it  had  the  distinction  of  being  the  only  paper  pub- 
lished in  Boston  while  Washington  was  besieging  the  city.  That 
it  did  not  survive  longer  was  doubtless  due  to  its  malicious  at- 
tacks upon  Washington  and  other  generals  of  the  Revolution: 
the  Boston  patriots,  aroused  by  their  desire  for  independence  at 
any  cost,  refused  to  tolerate  a  Tory  paper  which  they  had  long 
dubbed  The  Court  Gazette. 


CHAPTER  IV 
BEGINNINGS  IN  COLONIES 

MASSACHUSETTS,    PENNSYLVANIA,   AND   NEW   YORK 

BOTH  for  historical  and  for  sentimental  reasons,  the  beginnings 
of  anything  have  unusual  interest.  This  fact  will  explain  why 
so  much  space  is  given  to  the  first  two  or  three  newspapers  in 
each  of  the  original  thirteen  colonies.  Some  of  these  papei;s  were 
most  unpretentious  and  were  born  to  bloom  unseen  save  by  a 
comparatively  few  subscribers  who  were  usually  so  delinquent 
in  the  payment  of  their  subscriptions  that  many  of  the  papers 
continually  faced  the  possibility  of  suspension.  The  newspaper 
must  be  properly  nourished  and  must  have  a  fairly  good  circu- 
lation or  it  cannot  withstand  those  diseases  which  thrive  best 
when  the  circulation  is  poor  and  the  newspaper  is  struggling  for 
existence.  Though  the  high  death-rate  among  these  papers  tells 
its  own  story,  nowhere  will  be  found  a  more  practical  demon- 
stration of  following  the  advice,  "If  at  first  you  don't  succeed, 
try  again."  Whatever  else  may  have  been  his  qualifications, 
the  early  American  printer  as  a  usual  thing  was  persistent  in 
his  efforts  to  enlighten  his  neighbors  through  the  press,  and  in 
his  attempts  to  found  papers  may  be  found  that  distinguish- 
ing characteristic  of  American  journalism  which  knows  no  such 
thing  as  defeat.  The  fact  must  not  be  lost  sight  of  that  during 
the  early  history  of  this  country  newspaper  censors  were  ever 
present  who,  clothed  by  the  law  with  authority,  never  hesitated 
to  annoy  the  poor  printer  whenever  he  put  anything  interest- 
ing in  his  paper.  A  jail  sentence  rather  than  a  libel  suit  was  the 
sword  of  Damocles  which  hung  in  every  newspaper  office  should 
something  be  printed  which  reflected  in  any  way  upon  the 
Government.  Feeble  as  were  some  of  these  pioneer  papers, 
they  were  the  foundations  upon  which  rests  the  journalism  of 
to-day. 


BEGINNINGS   IN   COLONIES  29 

POSTAL  ORGAN  OF  MASSACHUSETTS 

When  John  Campbell,  the  founder  of  American  journalism 
and  the  publisher  of  The  News-Letter,  was,  in  1719,  removed 
from  his  office  as  postmaster  at  Boston,  his  successor  was  Wil- 
liam Brooker.  The  latter  for  several  reasons  evidently  felt  the 
need  of  a  special  organ,  for  on  December  21,  1719,  he  startedS 
The  Boston  Gazette.  Campbell,  said  to  have  been  so  indignant  I 
over  his  removal  from  office  that  he  would  not  let  his  paper  be 
distributed  through  the  mails,  intimated  that  his  News-Letter 
was  "held  up"  in  the  post-office  so  that  " people  remote  have 
been  prevented  from  having  the  News-Paper."  Whatever  his 
reason  he  kept  his  paper  out  of  the  mails,  a  fact  which  is  said  to 
have  helped  Brooker's  decision  to  bring  out  The  Gazette.  The 
latter  paper  became  practically  the  organ  of  the  Boston  post- 
master and  was  accordingly  passed  along  one  to. the  other  until 
it  became  a  part  of  The  England  Weekly  Journal  in  1741.  From 
1719  to  1754  every  postmaster  had  his  own  paper,  and  five  out 
of  the  six  who  held  the  office  during  this  time  were  connected 
with  The  Boston  Gazette. 

So  long  as  Brooker  was  postmaster,  the  printer  of  The  Gazette  „ 
was  James  Franklin.  When  the  paper  changed  hands,  the  print- 
ing went  to  Samuel  Kneeland.   Peeved  at  the  loss  of  this  busi- 
ness, Franklin  retaliated  by  starting  The  New-England  Courant 
on  August  7,  1721. 

FIRST  NEWSPAPER  WAR 

Of  the  newspaper  war  which  arose  after  the  starting  of  The 
New-England  Courant  between  —  or  among  —  the  three  Bos- 
ton papers,  only  the  briefest  mention  is  necessary.  Campbell 
doubtless  felt  the  competition,  for  his  appeals  for  support  of 
The  News-Letter  became  more  urgent.  If,  in  the  end,  he  had  to 
yield,  he  at  least  "died  with  his  boots  on." 

The  conflict,  however,  that  Franklin  had,  not  only  with  the 
authorities,  but  also  with  the  clergy,  deserves  more  than  pass- 
ing mention.  The  controversy  with  the  latter  started  over  vac- 
cination for  smallpox.  Franklin  was  bitterly  opposed  to  such  a 
practice,  and  the  way  he  lampooned  the  Reverend  Increase 


30        HISTORY   OF  AMERICAN   JOURNALISM 

Mather  for  upholding  such  a  doctrine  has  never  been  equaled 
even  by  the  yellow  press.  The  distinguished  clergyman  was 
something  of  a  fighter,  as  may  be  seen  from  his  "Advice  to  the 
Publick"  published  in  The  Gazette: 

Whereas  a  wicked  Libel  called  the  New-England  Courant,  has  repre- 
sented me  as  one  among  the  Supporters  of  it;  I  do  hereby  declare,  that 
altho'  I  paid  for  two  or  three  of  them,  I  then,  (before  the  last  Courant 
was  published)  sent  him  word  I  was  extreamly  offended  with  it !  In 
special,  because  in  one  of  his  Vile  Courants  he  insinuates,  that  if  the 
Ministers  of  God  approve  of  a  thing,  it  is  a  Sign  it  is  of  the  Devil;  which 
is  a  horrid  thing  to  be  related  !  And  altho'  in  one  of  the  Courants  it  is 
declared,  that  The  London  Mercury  Sept.  16,  1721,  affirs  that  Great 
Numbers  of  Persons  in  the  City  and  suburbs  are  under  the  Inoculation 
of  the  Small  Pox;  in  his  next  Courant  he  asserts,  that  it  was  some  Busy 
Inoculator,  that  imposed  on  the  Publick  in  saying  so;  Whereas  I  my- 
self saw  and  read  those  words  in  The  London  Mercury :  And  he  doth 
frequently  abuse  the  Ministers  of  Religion,  and  many  other  worthy 
Persons  in  a  manner,  which  is  intolerable.  For  these  and  such  like  Rea- 
sons I  signified  to  the  Printer,  that  I  would  have  no  more  of  their 
Wicked  Courants.  I  that  have  known  what  New-England  was  from 
the  Beginning,  cannot  but  be  troubled  to  see  the  Degeneracy  of  this 
Place.  I  can  well  remember  when  the  Civil  Government  would  have 
taken  an  effectual  Course  to  suppress  such  a  Cursed  Libel!  which  if 
it  be  not  done  I  am  afraid  that  some  Awful  Judgment  will  come  upon 
this  Land,  and  the  Wrath  of  God  will  arise,  and  there  will  be  no  Remedy. 
I  cannot  but  pity  poor  Franklin,  who  tho'  but  a  Young  Man  it  may  be 
Speedily  he  must  appear  before  the  Judgment  Seat  of  God,  and  what 
answer  will  he  give  for  printing  things  so  vile  and  abominable?  And  I 
cannot  but  Advise  the  Supporters  of  this  Courant  to  consider  the  Con- 
sequences of  being  Partakers  in  other  Mens  Sins,  and  no  more  Coun- 
tenance such  a  Wicked  Paper. 

The  Reverend  Mr.  Mather  was  reported  to  have  said  that 
The  New-England  Courant  was  "  carried  on  by  a  Hell-Fire  Club, 
with  a  Non- Juror  at  the  head  of  them."  Not  content  with  pick- 
ing a  quarrel  with  the  clergy  Franklin  began  to  criticize  the  acts 
of  civil  magistrates.  But  let  Benjamin  Franklin  tell  the  tale  how 
he  broke  into  journalism  as  the  result  of  his  brother's  troubles 
with  the  Assembly,  even  though  he  is  in  error  about  dates  and 
numerical  rank  of  The  New-England  Courant  which  was  the 
third  paper  in  Boston  and  the  fourth  in  the  colonies:  - 

My  brother  had,  in  1720,  begun  to  print  a  newspaper.  It  was  the 
second  that  appeared  in  America,  and  was  called  the  New  England  Cou- 


BEGINNINGS   IN  COLONIES  31 

rant.  The  only  one  before  it  was  the  Boston  News-Letter.  I  remember 
his  being  dissuaded  by  some  of  his  friends  from  the  undertaking,  as  not 
likely  to  succeed,  one  newspaper  being  in  their  judgment  enough  for 
America.  At  this  time,  1771,  there  are  not  less  than  five-and-twcnty. 
lie  went  on,  however,  with  the  undertaking.  I  was  employed  to  carry 
the  papers  to  the  customers,  after  having  worked  in  composing  the 
types  and  printing  off  the  sheets.  .  .  . 

My  brother's  discharge  was  accompanied  with  an  order,  and  a  very 
odd  one,  that  "James  Franklin  no  longer  print  the  newspaper  called 
The' New  England  Courant."  On  consultation  held  in  our  printing- 
office  amongst  his  friends,  what  he  should  do  in  this  conjuncture,  it 
was  proposed  to  elude  the  order  by  changing  the  name  of  the  paper. 
But  my  brother,  seeing  inconvenience  in  this,  came  to  a  conclusion,  as 
a  better  way,  to  let  the  paper  in  future  be  printed  in  the  name  of  Ben- 
jamin Franklin;  and  in  order  to  avoid  the  censure  of  the  Assembly, 
that  might  fall  on  him,  as  still  printing  it  by  his  apprentice,  he  con- 
trived and  consented  that  my  old  indenture  should  be  returned  to  me 
with  a  discharge  on  the  back  of  it,  to  show  in  case  of  necessity;  and,  in 
order  to  secure  to  him  the  benefit  of  my  service,  I  should  sign  new  in- 
dentures for  the  remainder  of  my  time,  which  were  to  be  kept  private. 
A  very  flimsy  scheme  it  was;  however,  it  was  immediately  executed, 
and  the  paper  was  printed  accordingly,  under  my  name,  for  several 
months. 

The  fact  not  to  be  lost  sight  of  is  that  every  such  conflict  with 
the  civil  authorities  brought  the  freedom  of  the  press  a  little 
nearer  its  realization.  Another  fact,  almost  equally  as  impor- 
tant, was  that  liberty  of  the  press  not  only  in  England,  but  also 
in  America  has  been  intimately  associated  with  liberty  of  reli- 
gious worship  and  that  freedom  in  both  was  simultaneous  in 
New  England.  The  Courant  was  probably  discontinued  in  1727. 

FIRST   PENNSYLVANIA   PAPER 

On  December  22,  1719,  the  Tuesday  following  the  Monday 
on  which  The  Boston  Gazette  was  established,  The  American 
Weekly  Mercury,  the  first  newspaper  in  the  middle  colonies  and 
the  third  paper  in  America,  appeared  in  Philadelphia  from  the 
press  of  Andrew  Bradford,  the  local  postmaster  and  a  son  of 
William  Bradford,  who  was  to  be  the  publisher  of  the  first  news- 
paper in  New  York.  At  first,  the  paper  was  sold  by  "Andrew 
Bradford  at  The  Bible  in  the  Second  Street  and  John  Copson 
in  the  High  Street/'  but  on  May  25,  1721,  Copson's  name  was 


32        HISTORY   OF   AMERICAN   JOURNALISM 

withdrawn  from  the  imprint  and  that  of  "  William  Bradford  in 
New  York"  was  substituted.  When  the  elder  Bradford  started 
The  New  York  Gazette  November  8,  1725,  his  name,  as  the  seller 
of  The  American  Weekly  Mercury  in  New  York,  was  removed. 
On  December  13,  1739,  The  Mercury  was  "  printed  by  Andrew 
and  William  Bradford,"  —a  partnership,  however,  which  lasted 
only  about  eleven  months,  when  The  Mercury  was  again  printed 
by  Andrew  Bradford.  After  his  death  on  November  23,  1742, 
the  next  issue,  December  2,  was  put  in  mourning  with  the  in- 
verted column  rules.  His  widow,  Cornelia  Bradford,  suspended 
the  paper  for  one  week  on  account  of  the  death  of  her  husband 
and  then  continued  the  black  borders  for  the  next  six  weeks. 
Later,  with  Isaiah  Warner  as  a  partner,  she  published  The  Mer- 
cury until  October  18,  1744,  when  she  again  became  the  sole 
proprietor.  The  paper  bore  her  name  in  the  imprint  so  far  as 
can  be  learned  until  its  suspension  early  in  1747. 

Andrew  Bradford,  like  other  colonial  editors,  had  his  troubles 
with  the  civic  authorities,  for  on  January  2,  1721,  he  printed  an 
item  which  read,  "our  General  Assembly  are  now  sitting  and 
we  have  great  expectation  from  them  at  this  juncture  that  they 
will  find  some  effectual  remedy  to  revive  the  dying  credit  of  this 
Province  and  restore  us  to  our  former  happy  circumstances." 
The  Provincial  Council  saw  a  criticism  of  its  actions  in  this 
paragraph  and  summoned  its  publisher  on  February  21  to  ex- 
plain why  such  an  item  was  inserted  in  his  paper.  In  its  defense 
Bradford  said  the  notice  was  written  and  inserted  by  a  German 
printer  without  authority  and  that  he  regretted  exceedingly  its 
publication.  With  the  usual  reprimand  and  with  a  warning 
never  to  publish  anything  in  the  future  about  the  affairs  of  any 
of  the  colonies,  he  was  discharged. 

This  punishment  was  mild  compared  with  the  one  that  he  re- 
ceived for  printing  some  communications  from  Benjamin  Frank- 
lin signed  "Busy  Body."  These  communications  by  Franklin, 
while  simply  insisting  that  those  in  authority  should  be  inspired 
with  a  public  spirit  and  with  a  love  of  their  country,  so  offended 
the  Governor  and  his  Council  that  they  arrested  Bradford,  sent 
him  to  jail,  and  later  bound  him  over  to  the  court.  In  colonial 
days  editors  did  not  seem  to  mind  being  locked  up  in  jail:  edit- 


BEGINNINGS   IN   COLONIES  33 

ing  a  paper  from  prison  was  always  sure  to  increase  the  circula- 
tion. Certainly,  Bradford's  Mercury  never  occupied  a  very  im- 
portant place  in  Philadelphia  until  after  he  had  been  in  prison. 
During  much  of  the  time  that  Bradford  conducted  The  Ameri- 
can Weekly  Mercury  he  was  postmaster  of  Philadelphia.  This 
office  was  of  great  help  to  him,  if  the  words  of  Franklin  can  be 
accepted  at  their  face  value.  To  quote  from  his  "  Autobiog- 
raphy":- 

As  he  (Bradford)  held  the  post  office,  it  was  imagined  that  he  had 
better  opportunities  for  obtaining  the  news,  and  his  paper  was  thought 
a  better  distributor  of  advertisements  than  mine,  and  therefore  had 
many  more;  which  was  a  profitable  thing  for  him  and  a  disadvantage 
to  me,  for  tho'  I  did  receive  and  send  papers  by  the  post,  yet  the  pub- 
lic opinion  was  otherwise;  for  what  I  did  send  was  by  bribing  the  rid- 
ers, who  took  them  privately,  Bradford  being  unkind  enough  to  forbid 
it,  which  occasioned  some  resentment  on  my  part;  and  I  thought  so 
meanly  of  the  practice  that  when  I  afterwards  came  into  the  position, 
I  took  care  never  to  imitate  it. 

SECOND   PAPER   IN   PHILADELPHIA 

With  the  issue  of  Number  80  of  The  New-England  Courant  on 
February  11,  1723  (Old  Style),  Benjamin  Franklin  had  become 
a  Boston  newspaper  publisher  in  name,  if  not  in  fact.  After  a 
quarrel  with  his  brother,  James,  he  had  gone  to  New  York: 
not  finding  employment  with  William  Bradford,  the  only  printer 
there  at  that  time,  he  had  gone  on  to  Philadelphia  where  he 
worked  at  his  trade  in  the  office  of  Samuel  Keimer,  one  of  the 
two  printers  of  the  place.  Of  his  trip  to  England  and  of  his  part- 
nership, upon  his  return  to  Philadelphia,  with  Hugh  Meredith, 
nothing  needs  to  be  said  here  until  that  time  when  they  had  de- 
cided to  publish  a  newspaper.  Unfortunately  for  them,  their 
decision  reached  Keimer  through  a  former  fellow-workman, 
George  Webb,  before  they  were  prepared  to  bring  out  the  paper. 

Keimer,  on  the  other  hand,  lost  no  time  in  publishing  a  pro- 
spectus of  one  he  would  speedily  print.  His  announcement  re- 
minds one  of  modern  magazine  braggadocio :  — 

Whereas  many  have  encouraged  me  to  publish  a  Paper  of  Intelli- 
gence: and  whereas  the  late  Mercury  has  been  so  wretchedly  performed 
as  to  be  a  Scandal  to  the  Name  of  Printing,  and  to  be  truly  styled  Non- 


34        HISTORY  OF   AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

sense  in  Folio,  This  is  therefore  to  notify  that  I  shall  begin  in  Novem- 
ber next  a  most  useful  Paper,  to  be  entitled,  The  Pennsylvania  Gazette 
or  Universal  Instructor.  The  Proposer  having  dwelt  at  the  Fountain  of 
Intelligence  in  Europe,  will  be  able  to  give  a  Paper  to  please  all  and  to 
offend  none,  at  the  reasonable  Expense  of  Ten  Shillings  per  annum, 
Proclamation  Money. 

The  paper,  with  the  longer  title  of  The  Universal  Instructor  in 
all  Arts  and  Sciences;  and  Pennsylvania  Gazette,  appeared  on 
December  24,  1728.  The  next  week  Keimer,  adopting  the  style 
of  the  Quakers,  dated  his  paper,  "The  2d  of  the  llth  mo.  1728." 
In  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  first  two  pages  were  given  up  to 
extracts  from  Chambers'  "  Dictionary  of  the  Arts  and  Sciences," 
a  book  just  imported  from  London,  Keimer  boasted  that  with 
the  thirteenth  issue  the  paper  had  a  circulation  of  two  hundred 
and  fifty  copies.  Then  the  subscribers  began  to  drop  off:  not 
even  selected  tales  of  English  life  or  extracts  from  Defoe's  "Re- 
ligious Courtship"  prevented  the  diminution.  One  reason  for 
the  decline  may  have  been  the  ridicule  hurled  at  the  paper  by 
Franklin,  under  the  nom-de-plume  of  "Busy  Body,"  in  the  col- 
umns of  The  Mercury.  After  nine  months  the  paper  had  less 
than  one  hundred  subscribers,  and  Keimer  was  glad  to  sell  at 
any  price  to  Franklin  and  Meredith,  who  assumed  control  with 
Number  40  on  October  2,  1729. 

FRANKLIN   A  REAL  NEWSPAPER  PUBLISHER 

The  new  firm  shortened  the  title  to  The  Pennsylvania  Gazette, 
cut  short  the  "Religious  Courtship,"  and  referred  its  readers  to 
Chambers'  "Dictionary"  for  further  information  which  it  would 
take  them  fifty  years  to  give  if  they  followed  Keimer's  example 
of  printing.  In  the  place  of  these  features,  Franklin  put  good 
news-items  mixed  with  a  little  comment  of  his  own.  With 
the  fourth  issue  he  announced  a  "Half  Sheet  twice  a  Week" 
and  gave  America  its  first  semi-weekly.  But  he  was  too  pro- 
gressive a  journalist  for  the  time,  and  after  a  few  numbers  he 
returned  to  weekly  publication. 

On  July  14,  1730,  the  partnership  of  Franklin  and  Meredith 
was  dissolved:  the  former  continued  the  sole  publisher  of 
the  paper  until  1748  when  he  admitted  David  Hall  who  had 


BEGINNINGS   IN   COLONIES  35 

started  to  work  on  the  paper  five  years  before.  Hall,  to  quote 
Franklin's  words,  "took  off  my  hands  all  care  of  the  printing- 
office,  paying  me  punctually  my  share  of  the  profits."  This 
second  partnership  lasted  eighteen  years,  during  which  time  the 
paper  became  possibly  the  most  influential  and  certainly  the 
most  successful  financially  of  any  of  the  colonial  newspapers. 
By  way  of  illustration  of  the  latter,  the  profits  from  1748  to  1766, 
when  Hall  became  the  sole  proprietor,  amounted  to  over  twelve 
thousand  pounds  for  subscriptions  and  over  four  thousand  for 
advertising. 

When  the  Stamp  Act  went  into  effect  on  November  1,  1765, 
The  Pennsylvania  Gazette  appeared  not  only  without  a  title,  but 
also  without  an  imprint  so  that  the  publisher  might  not  be 
known  to  the  authorities.  When  the  paper  resumed  its  old 
title,  Franklin's  name  was  omitted  in  the  imprint.  He  doubt- 
less sold  out  to  Hall  at  that  time,  but  he  did  not  dissolve  the 
partnership  formally  until  February  1,  1766.  In  May  of  that 
year  Hall  took  in  William  Sellers  as  partner  and  together  they 
continued  The  Pennsylvania  Gazette. 

After  Franklin  ceased  to  be  connected  actively  with  The 
Pennsylvania  Gazette,  he  achieved  fame  in  so  many  lines  that  he 
has  often  been  spoken  of  as  the  many-sided  Franklin.  To  the 
last,  however,  the  diplomat  and  scientist  thought  of  himself 
first  as  a  printer.  This  epitaph,  composed  by  and  for  himself, 
before  his  death  on  April  19,  1790,  showed  this  fact:  — 

The  Body  of 

Benjamin  Franklin,  Printer, 
(Like  the  cover  of  an  old  Book, 

Its  contents  worn  out, 
And  stript  of  its  lettering  and  gilding)1 

Lies  here,  food  for  worms! 

Yet  the  work  itself  shall  not  be  lost, 

For  it  will,  as  he  believed,  appear  once  more 

In  a  new 

And  more  beautiful  edition, 
Corrected  and  amended 
By  its  Author. 

The  demise  of  The  Pennsylvania  Gazette  occurred  on  October 
11,  1815.  An  advertisement  on  that  date  reprinted  a  notice 


36        HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN   JOURNALISM 

dated  September  20,  1815,  in  which  an  announcement  was 
made  that  owing  to  the  death  of  both  proprietors,  Hall  and 
Pierie,  The  Pennsylvania  Gazette  would  discontinue  on  October 
11,  1815.  The  notice  asserted  that  if  enough  subscribers  could 
be  obtained  by  a  certain  date  the  paper  would  be  revived.  New 
papers  which  had  appeared  in  Philadelphia  seemed  to  have  the 
popular  favor,  for  the  required  number  of  subscribers  was  not 
secured  and  The  Pennsylvania  Gazette,  which  had  held  a  fore- 
most place  in  two  different  eras  of  American  journalism,  was  no 
more.  The  plant  of  the  paper  was  sold  and  the  equipment  be- 
came scattered  among  the  various  printing-offices  of  the  city. 

FIRST  PAPER  IN   NEW  YORK 

Because  William  Bradford  was  the  founder  of  the  first  paper 
in  New  York,  and  because  he  trained  in  his  shop  many  of  the 
printer-editors  of  colonial  New  York,  he  should  receive  special 
attention.  After  learning  his  trade  in  the  office  of  his  father-in- 
law,  Andrew  Sowle,  he  accompanied  William  Penn  to  America 
in  1682.  Upon  his  return  to  England  in  1685  he  procured  a  press 
and  type  and  again  set  sail  for  Philadelphia  where  he  opened  a 
bookshop  and  did  a  general  printing  business  —  a  work  which 
needs  only  passing  mention,  as  he  did  not  at  that  time  think  of 
starting  a  newspaper. 

Invited  to  come  to  New  York  by  Governor  Benjamin  Fletcher, 
Bradford  was  appointed  " Royal  Printer"  in  1693.  In  1696 
Bradford  evidently  reprinted  an  English  newspaper,  —  prob- 
ably The  London  Gazette,  —  for  a  letter  dated  May  30,  1696, 
from  Governor  Fletcher  to  the  Lords  of  Trade  says:  "A  Ship 
belonging  to  this  Place  from  Madera  happily  mett  at  Sea  that 
Vessell  which  had  your  Lord's  Packet  for  Virginia  &  brought 
me  a  Gazett  which  gave  me  an  Account  of  that  horrid  Conspir- 
acy against  His  Majesty's  Sacred  Person.  I  caused  it  to  be  re- 
printed here."  Possibly  Bradford  was  mindful  of  the  fate  of  the 
venture  attempted  by  Benjamin  Harris  in  Boston  and  did  not 
care  to  start  a  paper  when  the  censorship  was  so  severe. 

Thomas,  in  his  "  History  of  Printing,"  reproduced  a  heading 
of  a  second  number  of  The  New-York  Gazette  in  which  it  showed 
the  date  of  from  Monday,  October  16,  to  October  23,  1725: 


BEGINNINGS   IN  COLONIES  37 

this  would  make  the  first  issue  on  October  16,  1725  —  a  date 
which  has  been  commonly  accepted  as  that  on  which  New  York's 
first  newspaper  appeared.  While  Thomas  undoubtedly  knew  at 
first  hand  about  the  early  journalism  of  New  England,  he  was 
evidently  mistaken  about  the  date  of  the  first  issue  of  The  New- 
York  Gazette.  Unfortunately,  no  copy  of  the  first  issue  of  the 
paper  has  survived,  but  there  are,  however,  copies  of  the  paper 
published  the  first  half  of  1726.  Taking  any  one  of  these  as  a 
starting-point  and  working  backwards,  one  finds  that  Volume 
I,  Number  1,  should  be  dated  November  1  to  November  8, 
1725:  in  other  words,  The  New-York  Gazette  was  first  published 
on  November  8,  1725,  if  there  was  regularity  of  publication. 

To  support  the  correctness  of  this  date ,  the  following  facts 
may  be  cited:  Bradford's  day  of  publication  was  on  Monday, 
and  any  almanac  for  1725  shows  that  October  16  fell  not  on 
Monday,  but  on  Saturday. 

The  New-York  Gazette,  Number  26,  May  2,  1726,  contained 
this  item :  — 

N.B.  This  Numb.  26  of  our  Gazette,  concludes  the  first  half  year  and 
is  the  Time  the  first  Payment  should  be  made  by  the  Gentlemen  who 
encourage  the  same.  And  altho'  the  Number  subscribed  for  does  not 
defray  the  Charge,  yet  we  intend  to  Continue  it  the  next  half  year,  in 
the  hopes  of  further  Encouragement. 

The  most  positive  proof  of  November  8  as  the  date  on  which 
Bradford  first  brought  out  his  Gazette  will  be  found  in  an  item 
published  after  the  paper  had  been  in  existence  two  and  one-half 
years :  — 

By  the  Advice  and  encouragement  of  some  Gentlemen,  for  the  In- 
formation of  the  Publick,  We  began  to  Publish  this  Gazette  the  first  of 
November,  1725  (not  doubting  but  we  should  have  Subscribers  to  take 
off  such  a  Number  as  might  defray  the  Charge),  and  the  first  of  May 
last  it  was  Two  Years  &  a  half  that  we  have  continued  its  Publication; 
but  having  calculated  the  Charge  of  Printing  and  Paper  for  the  same, 
as  also  how  much  will  arise  to  defray  that  Charge  (when  all  those  that 
take  this  Gazette  have  paid  in  what  is  due  to  the  first  of  May  last)  do 
find  that  we  shall  lose  Thirty-Five  Pounds  in  the  two  years  and  a  half 
by  Publishing  this  Paper,  besides  the  trouble  and  Charge  of  Corre- 
spondents, collecting  the  News,  making  up  Pacquets  and  conveying  the 
same  to  those  in  the  Country  who  take  them,  And  therefore  if  some 


38        HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 


further  Encouragement  be  not  given  by  a  larger  Number  of  Subscri 
ers  for  said  Gazette  we  must  let  it  fall,  and  cease  publishing  the  same. 
Many  Persons  that  take  this  Gazette  being  above  a  year  behind  in  their 
Payments,  and  some  not  having  paid  since  the  first  publishing  of  the 
same,  They  are  now  desired  to  pay  in  what  is  due,  in  order  to  enable  the 
further  Publication,  if  it  be  continued. 

This  advertisement,  or  appeal,  in  Bradford's  own  paper  set- 
tles, beyond  the  permissibility  of  a  doubt,  the  month  in  which 
his  Gazette  first  appeared.  It  should  be  noticed  that  Bradford 
did  not  say  the  first  day  of  November,  but  "the  first  of  Novem- 
ber 1725,"  and  consequently,  because  of  the  other  proofs  just 
given,  his  assertion  may  be  taken  as  a  common  way  about  speak- 
ing of  the  first  week  of  the  month.  In  view  of  these  facts,  the 
date  of  New  York's  first  newspaper  may  be  set  down  as  No- 
vember 8,  1725. 

From  1725  to  1730  The  New-York  Gazette  consisted  of  a  single 
sheet  of  four  pages.  From  1730  on,  the  number  of  pages  was 
irregular,  sometimes,  two,  other  times,  three,  and  occasionally, 
six.  The  paper  was  invariably  poorly  printed  —  doubtless  due 
to  the  fact  that  Bradford  had  used  the  type  for  a  long  time  be- 
fore he  began  to  print  this  newspaper.  Advertisements  were 
few  in  number  and  the  subscribers  were  not  numerous  enough 
to  afford  much  encouragement  to  the  printer  —  a  fact  brought 
out  by  the  two  quotations  already  printed  from  Bradford's 
Gazette. 

During  all  the  years  that  Bradford  conducted  his  paper,  he 
was  most  loyal  to  those  in  authority.  Yet  Bradford,  at  heart, 
undoubtedly  was  in  favor  of  the  freedom  of  the  press  and  sup- 
ported in  his  columns  many  things  simply  because  he  needed 
the  salary  which  he  received  as  "Printer  to  the  Province  of  New 
York,"  and  which  he  would  doubtless  have  lost  had  he  adopted 
the  motto  of  The  New-York  Chronicle,  the  tenth  paper  in  New 
York,  which  read:  "Open  to  all  Parties  and  Influenced  by  None." 
Had  The  New-York  Gazette  been  open  to  the  Popular  Party,  it  is 
a  matter  of  doubt  whether  John  Peter  Zenger  would  have  started 
The  New-York  Weekly  Journal  in  1733. 

The  newspaper  war  which  arose  between  The  New-York 
Gazette  and  The  New-York  Weekly  Journal,  the  next  paper  of 


:rib- 


BEGINNINGS   IN   COLONIES  39 

the  colony,  made  Bradford's  newspaper  unpopular  with  the 
common  people  and  assisted  in  a  most  material  way  to  put  Zen- 
ger's  paper  on  a  firm  basis. 

Bradford  retired  from  the  newspaper  world  on  November  19, 
1744,  with  the  last  issue  of  The  New-York  Gazette.  For  some 
time  the  paper  had  been  published  under  the  joint  imprint  of 
William  Bradford  and  Henry  De  Foreest.  After  Bradford's  re- 
tirement, De  Foreest  changed  the  name  of  the  paper  to  The 
New-York  Evening  Post,  with  the  next  issue  on  November  26, 
1744.  Bradford  died  May  25,  1752. 

ZENGER  AND   HIS   PAPER 

The  second  newspaper  in  the  city  was  The  New-York  Weekly 
Journal  first  issued  Monday,  November  5,  1733,  —  incorrectly 
dated  October  5,  —  by  John  Peter  Zenger,  a  German  who  had 
come  to  New  York  in  1710  with  a  group  of  Palatines  sent  over 
by  Queen  Anne.  Robert  Hunter,  at  that  time  "  Governor-in- 
Chief  of  New  York,  New  Jersey,  and  Territories  Depending 
Thereon  in  America,"  apprenticed  Zenger  on  October  26,  1710, 
for  eight  years  to  William  Bradford  the  printer  whose  news- 
paper has  just  been  mentioned.  Zenger,  after  he  had  become 
fairly  proficient  at  his  trade,  ran  away  from  his  employer  and 
drifted  first  into  Pennsylvania  and  later  into  Maryland.  Upon 
his  return  to  New  York  he  formed  a  partnership  with  Brad- 
ford. His  association  with  his  former  partner  was  brief,  for  in 
1726  he  set  up  his  own  print-shop  first  on  Smith  and  then  later 
on  Broad  Street. 

At  this  time  New  York  had  no  newspaper  to  speak  for  the 
Popular  Party,  as  Bradford's  Gazette  was  practically  a  Govern- 
ment organ  and  its  editor  had  to  follow  the  directions  of  the 
Government  "  under  the  penalty  of  losing  50  pounds  per  annum 
salary  and  the  title  of  the  King's  Printer  for  the  Province  of  New 
York."  As  Zenger  was  poor  and  barely  able  to  make  both  ends 
meet,  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  when  he  brought  out  The  New- 
York  Weekly  Journal  on  November  5,  1733,  he  was  assisted 
financially  by  those  opposed  to  the  ruling  powers.  Among 
these  was  one  James  Alexander,  who,  in  modern  newspaper  lan- 
guage, would  be  called  the  chief  editorial  writer.  Most  of  the 


40         HISTORY   OF   AMERICAN   JOURNALISM 

contents  of  The  Journal  was  contributed  matter,  as  may  be 
learned  by  any  one  who  cares  to  turn  to  the  files  of  the  early 
numbers.  Zenger's  contributions  are  easily  discovered  by  their 
poor  spelling  and  by  their  grammatical  errors.  Nevertheless, 
The  Journal,  which  was  folio  in  size,  was  much  better  printed 
than  Bradford's  Gazette,  and  so  popular  were  some  of  the  articles 
in  the  early  issues  that  more  than  one  edition  had  to  be  run  off. 
Zenger  told  of  the  success  of  his  venture  in  the  twelfth  issue 
which  appeared  on  January  21,  1734  (3),  in  which  he  said:  - 

To  my  Subscribers  and  Wellwishers; 

Now  when  Forreign  News  is  not  to  be  had  and  all  other  News  Writ- 
ers in  these  countries  are  at  a  Loss  how  to  continue  their  Papers,  and 
what  to  fill  them  up  with;  I  must  acknowledge  my  Obligation  to  you  to 
be  such,  that  you  do  so  plentifully  supply  me,  that  tho'  for  some  Weeks 
past  I  have  used  my  smallest  Letter,  and  to  put  as  much  into  a  Paper 
as  was  in  my  Power,  yet  I  have  now  Supplies  sufficient  to  fill  above 
seven  weekly  Papers  more.  This  I  mention  that  my  Correspondents 
whose  Works  have  not  presently  a  Place  in  my  Journal  may  know  the 
cause  of  it  and  excuse  it  for  a  Time,  assuring  them  that  Justice  shall 
be  done  to  their  Labours  as  soon  as  I  possibly  can,  at  least  so  much  of 
them  as  I  am  advised  I  dare  safely  print  and  in  order  to  do  Justice  to 
every  one,  I  have  thought  of  publishing  a  Thursdays  Journal  weekly 
for  the  Next  Quarter,  if  my  Subscribers  for  this  Mondays  Journal,  will 
on  their  first  Quarters  Payment  signify  their  desire  of  it  either  by  Let- 
ter or  Subscription  for  that  purpose  on  the  like  Terms  as  this  Paper, 
which  I  beg  they  '11  consider  of  and  signify  their  Inclinations,  and  if  a 
sufficient  Number  to  bear  the  charge  approve  of  it,  it  shall  (God  willing) 
be  done. 

I  am 
Your  obliged  humble  Servant 

J.  Peter  Zenger. 

An  interesting  comparison  of  The  Gazette  and  The  Journal  was 
made  by  a  correspondent  who,  writing  under  the  nom-de-plume 
"Upon,"  gave  the  following  reasons  for  his  selection:  "Zenger 
rides  too  fast  and  sticks  in  the  spur  when  he  ought  to  make  use 
of  the  reins." 

ZENGER'S  TRIAL 

An  editor  with  such  characteristics  was  bound  to  get  into 
trouble  with  the  authorities  in  colonial  days.  In  his  second  num- 


BEGINNINGS   IN   COLONIES  41 

ber,  Zenger  published  an  article  on  "The  Liberty  of  the  Press." 
This  was  followed  by  other  articles  radical  in  tone.  In  Novem- 
ber, 1734,  an  issue  of  The  Weekly  Journal  was  omitted.  The  rea- 
son Zenger  gave  in  his  next  issue,  Number  55,  for  Monday,  No- 
vember 25 :  — 

To  All  My  Subscribers  and  Benefactors  Who  take  My  Weekly  Journall. 
Gentlemen,  Ladies,  and  Others; 

As  you  last  week  were  Disappointed  of  My  Journall  I  think  it  Incum- 
bent upon  me,  to  publish  My  Apoligy  which  is  this.  On  the  Lords  Day, 
the  Seventeenth  of  this  Instant,  I  was  Arrested,  taken  and  Imprisoned 
in  the  common  Goal  of  this  Citty,  by  Virtue  of  a  Warrant  from  the 
Governour,  and  the  Honorable  Francis  Harrison,  Esq;  and  others  in 
Council  of  which  (God  Willing)  yo'l  have  a  coppy  whereupon  I  was 
put  under  such  Restraint  that  I  had  not  the  Liberty  of  Pen,  Ink,  or 
Paper,  or  to  see,  or  speak  with  People  till  upon  my  Complaint  to  the 
Honourable  the  Chief  Justice,  at  my  appearing  before  him  upon  My 
Habias  Corpus  on  Wednesday  following.  Who  discountenanced  that 
Proceeding  and  therefore  I  have  since  that  Tune  the  Liberty  of  Speak- 
ing through  the  Hole  of  the  Door  to  My  Wife  and  Servants  by  which 
I  doubt  not  yo'l  think  me  sufficiently  Excused  for  not  sending  my  last 
weeks  Journall,  and  I  hope  for  the  future  by  the  Liberty  of  Speaking 
to  my  Servants  thro'  the  Hole  of  the  Door  of  the  Prison  to  entertain 
you  with  My  Weakly  Journall  as  formerly. 

And  am  your  obliged 

Humble  Servant 

J.  Peter  Zenger. 

Writing  from  his  prison  on  December  20,  1734,  Zenger  not 
only  defended  himself  in  replying  to  an  attack  made  in  Brad- 
ford's Gazette,  but  also  criticized  its  writer  for  recalling  the  fact 
that  he  was  brought  over  at  the  expense  of  the  Crown.  To  quote 
Zenger's  words :  — 

There  is  a  great  Noise  made  in  that  ridiculous  Letter  in  Mr.  Brad- 
ford's last  Gazette  about  setting  the  Province  in  Flames,  raising  of  Sedi- 
tion and  Tumults,  etc.  I  know  of  none,  either  past  or  intended;  if  my 
Adversaries  know  of  any,  they  '1  do  well  to  discover  them,  and  prevent 
the  Consequences  .  .  .  That  I  was  brought  over  at  the  charitable 
expense  of  the  Crown  is  the  only  Truth  that  groaping  Fumbler  found 
when  he  studied  that  clumsy  Performence  —  I  acknowledge  it;  Thanks 
to  QUEEN  ANNE  whose  Name  I  Mention  with  Reverence,  her  Bounty 
to  me  and  my  distress'd  Country  Folks  to  be  gratefully  remem- 
bered. If  that  Author  has  contributed  any  Thing  towards  it,  I  begg  to 
be  inf  orm'd,  I  assure  him  that  my  Acknowledgement  shall  not  be  want- 


42        HISTORY   OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

ing,  not  with  standing  his  111  Treatment:  If  he  has  not,  I  begg  leave  to 
tell  him,  that  it  is  mean  for  him  to  twit  me  with  Benefits  that  I  am 
no  ways  beholden  to  him  for. 

Because  of  his  attack  on  the  arbitrary  and  corrupt  adminis- 
tration of  the  British  Colonial  Governor  Crosby,  Zenger  had 
been  arrested  on  the  charge  of  seditious  libel.  In  the  trial  which 
followed,  Zenger  was  fortunate  in  having  to  defend  him  Andrew 
Hamilton,  probably  the  ablest  lawyer  of  Philadelphia.  During 
the  most  interesting  trial  several  departures  were  made  from 
the  legal  procedure  of  the  past  in  libel  suits.  These  have  been 
outlined  by  Melville  E.  Stone,  General  Manager  of  the  Asso- 
ciated Press,  as  follows :  — 

First,  the  jury  took  the  bit  in  their  teeth  and  asserted  their  right  to 
be  the  sole  judges  of  both  the  law  and  the  facts.  Second,  they  decided 
that  the  oldtime  rule  that  "the  greater  the  truth  the  greater  the  libel" 
was  an  unwise  one.  Zenger  was  acquitted.  And  so  it  came  about  that 
there  was  a  famous  revolution  in  the  colonial  law.  The  judge  ceased  to 
be  the  sole  arbiter  of  an  editor's  fate,  and  the  truth  when  published 
from  good  motives  and  justifiable  ends  became  an  adequate  defence 
for  the  journalist  brought  to  bar.  This  meant  that  for  the  first  time  in 
the  world's  history  the  freedom  of  the  press,  so  far  as  such  freedom  was 
consistent  with  public  rights,  was  established.  The  seed  which  John 
Milton  had  sown  a  century  before,  when  he  wrote  his  famous  plea  for 
"unlicensed  printing/'  had  come  to  fruition.  Gouverneur  Morris  said 
this  verdict  was  "the  dawn  of  that  liberty  which  afterward  revolu- 
tionized America." 

END  OF  ZENGER'S  CAREER 

Zenger  was  made  Public  Printer  for  the  Province  of  New 
York  in  1737,  and  a  year  later  was  given  the  same  office  for  the 
Province  of  New  Jersey.  He  continued,  however,  to  bring  out 
his  Weekly  Journal  and  lived  to  see  the  suspension  of  his  rival, 
The  New-York  Weekly  Gazette.  The  New-York  Evening  Post,  the 
first  paper  of  that  name  in  the  city,  told  of  the  end  of  Zenger's 
career  when  it  published  the  following  obituary  notice  on  Au- 
gust 4,  1746:- 

On  Monday  Evening  last,  departed  this  Life  Mr.  John  Peter  Zenger, 
Printer,  in  the  49  year  of  his  Age;  He  Has  left  a  Wife  and  six  children 
behind,  he  was  a  loving  Husband,  and  a  tender  Father,  and  his  Death 
is  much  lamented  by  his  Family  and  Relations. 


BEGINNINGS   IN  COLONIES  43 

The  New-York  Weekly  Journal,  however,  continued  to  be  pub- 
lished by  Zenger 's  wife  and  son,  John  Zenger,  Jr.,  until  March 
18,  1751,  —  or  possibly  a  few  weeks  longer,  —  though  no  copies 
are  known  of  a  later  date  than  the  one  just  given. 

Mother  and  son,  however,  experienced  the  greatest  difficul- 
ties in  making  the  paper  pay  expenses,  and  at  various  times 
printed  in  The  New-York  Weekly  Journal  notices  requesting 
subscribers  who  did  not  have  the  ready  money  to  send  in  hams, 
butter,  cheese,  poultry,  flour,  etc.,  in  payment  for  their  sub- 
scriptions in  order  that  the  "poor  printer"  might  bring  out  his 
newspaper.  The  family  was  reduced  to  such  straits  financially 
that  New  York  printers  had  to  come  to  its  aid:  James  Parker, 
for  example,  in  his  Post-Boy,  advertised  in  the  issue  for  No- 
vember 11,  1751,  that  "a  small  Number  of  the  Charters  of  the 
City  of  New  York,  printed  by  the  late  Mr.  Zenger,  for  the  Bene- 
fit of  his  Widow,  are  to  be  Sold  by  the  Printer  hereof,  Price  3 
Shillings." 


CHAPTER  V 
BEGINNINGS  IN  COLONIES   (continued} 

IN  the  printing-plants  of  the  newspapers  mentioned  in  the  pre- 
ceding chapter  were  trained  many  of  the  pioneers  who  founded 
newspapers  in  the  other  colonies.  Especially  was  this  true  of 
the  plant  owned  by  Benjamin  Franklin  who,  on  several  occa- 
sions, helped  his  apprentices  to  establish  their  newspapers. 
Just  what  financial  relations  existed  between  Franklin  and  these 
printers  must  be  a  matter  of  conjecture.  The  partnership  agree- 
ment of  The  Pennsylvania  Chronicle  showed  that  a  third  interest 
had  been  set  aside  for  Franklin  should  he  desire  to  avail  him- 
self of  the  offer.  This  policy  of  Franklin  really  made  him  the 
first  owner  of  a  " string  of  newspapers."  The  reason  why  New 
Jersey  did  not  have  a  printed  newspaper  until  after  the  Colo- 
nial Period  closed  is  easily  given:  there  was  no  demand,  for  the 
New  York  and  Pennsylvania  papers  met  all  the  needs.  The 
Revolution,  however,  changed  matters,  and  New  Jersey  came 
forward  with  financial  assistance  for  the  establishment  of  its 
own  newspaper.  Mention  has  been  made  in  an  earlier  chapter 
of  the  written  newspaper  publicly  posted  in  a  tavern  which 
supplemented  in  New  Jersey  the  printed  sheets  from  other 
colonies.  The  expressed  hope  of  an  early  Governor  of  Virginia 
that  his  colony  would  not  have  a  newspaper  "  these  hundred 
years"  was  not  fulfilled:  the  success  of  the  newspapers  in  other 
colonies  led  to  the  establishment  of  The  Virginia  Gazette. 

GENERALLY   A   GAZETTE 

The  mention  of  the  term  Gazette  recalls  the  popularity  of  this 
word  as  a  title  for  a  newspaper.  In  nine  of  the  thirteen  colonies 
the  first  paper  was  a  Gazette:  these  colonies  were  Connecticut, 
Georgia,  Maryland,  North  Carolina,  New  Hampshire,  New  Jer- 
sey, New  York,  Rhode  Island,  Virginia.  In  the  four  remaining 
colonies  where  the  first  newspaper  had  another  name,  the  sec- 
ond paper  to  be  established  had  the  word  Gazette  in  its  title. 


BEGINNINGS  IN  COLONIES  45 

The  second  favorite  as  a  title  for  a  newspaper  during  the  colo- 
nial days  was  The  Journal. 

PARKS'S  PAPER  IN  MARYLAND 

William  Parks,  who  had  learned  his  trade  in  England,  was 
the  founder  of  journalism  in  two  of  the  colonies.  To  him  be- 
longs the  honor  of  bringing  out  the  first  paper  not  only  in  Mary- 
land, but  also  in  Virginia.  In  setting  up  his  press  in  the  former 
colony  in  1726  he  had  been  made  "  Public  Printer  to  Maryland." 
One  year  later  he  began,  on  September  19,  The  Maryland  Gazette 
at  Annapolis.  As  the  colony  was  but  sparsely  settled  at  the  time 
he  had  great  difficulty  not  only  in  getting  subscribers,  but  also 
in  securing  advertisements:  at  times  his  paper  contained  no 
advertising  save  the  notices  inserted  by  himself  about  the  things 
for  sale  in  his  print-shop.  He  was,  however,  more  energetic  in 
the  matter  of  attempting  to  gather  the  news  than  many  of  the 
pioneer  printers,  and  while  visiting  England  in  1730,  he  made 
arrangements  "by  which  upon  all  Occasions,  I  shall  be  furnished 
with  the  freshest  Intelligence  both  from  thence  and  other  parts 
of  Europe."  Finding  it  financially  impossible  to  continue  his 
paper,  Parks  discontinued  The  Gazette  in  1731,  but  on  Decem- 
ber 8,  1732,  he  brought  out  the  paper  again  under  the  title  The 
Maryland  Gazette  Revived.  Associated  with  him  in  the  revival 
of  the  paper  was  Edmund  Hall,  but  evidently  the  partnership 
lasted  only  one  year,  for  the  imprint  of  December  28,  1733, 
showed  that  William  Parks  was  again  the  sole  proprietor.  Some 
time  between  March  and  April  of  that  year,  the  word  Revived 
was  dropped  from  the  title  and  the  paper  came  out  simply  as 
The  Maryland  Gazette.  In  December  the  paper  was  irregular  in 
appearance  and  finally  was  totally  discontinued. 

GREEN'S  GAZETTE 

Another  newspaper  with  the  same  title,  The  Maryland  Ga- 
zette, was  started  at  Annapolis,  January  17,  1745,  by  Jonas 
Green,  one  of  the  greatest  editors  of  the  Colonial  Period.  Con- 
sequently, his  account  of  what  he  hoped  to  make  The  Maryland 
Gazette  may  be  quoted  in  full  to  show  what  the  best  publishers 
of  that  time  wanted  their  papers  to  be:  — 


46         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

OUR  Intend  therefore,  is  to  give  the  Public  a  Weekly  Account  of 
the  most  remarkable  Occurrences,  foreign  and  domestic,  which  shall 
from  time  to  time  come  to  our  Knowledge;  having  always  a  principal 
Regard  to  such  Articles  as  nearest  concern  the  American  Plantations 
in  general,  and  the  Province  of  Maryland  in  particular;  ever  observing 
the  strictest  Justice  and  Truth  in  Relation  of  Facts,  and  the  utmost 
Disinterestedness  and  Impartiality  in  Points  of  Controversy . 

AND  in  a  Dearth  of  News,  which,  in  this  remote  Part  of  the  World, 
may  sometimes  reasonably  be  expected,  we  shall  study  to  supply  that 
Deficit,  by  presenting  our  Readers  with  the  best  Materials  we  can  pos- 
sibly collect;  having  always  in  this  Respect,  a  due  Regard  to  what- 
ever may  conduce  to  the  Promotion  of  Virtue  and  Learning,  the 
Suppression  of  Vice  and  Immorality,  and  the  Instruction  as  well  as 
Entertainment  of  our  Readers. 

WE  take  this  Opportunity  of  making  Application  to  our  Learned 
Correspondents,  whose  ingenious  Productions,  if  with  such  we  shall 
at  any  Time  be  favoured,  will  ever  find  a  Place  in  this  Paper,  and  lay 
the  Printer  under  greatest  Obligations;  provided  whatsoever  is  trans- 
mitted of  this  Kind,  be  consistent  with  Sobriety  and  good  Manners. 

TO  render  Our  GAZETTE  useful,  as  well  as  entertaining,  we  shall 
present  our  Readers  with  the  best  Directions  in  the  Culture  of  Flax  and 
Hemp,  especially  the  former,  in  the  plainest  Manner;  which  we  hope 
will  be  of  public  Advantage  to  the  Community  in  the  present  Situa- 
tion of  Affairs,  when  we  can't  always  be  certain  of  Supplies,  and  they 
are  not  to  be  had  at  all  but  at  such  Prices  as  the  Generality  of  the  Peo- 
ple are  not  able  to  give  for  them. 

AS  the  prosecuting  and  carrying  on  an  Undertaking  of  this  Kind  has 
been  much  wished  for,  and  long  desired,  and  must  necessarily  be  at- 
tended with  considerable  Trouble  and  Expence;  we  doubt  not  of  meet- 
ing with  a  due  Encouragement  from  the  good  People  of  this  Province, 
in  a  sufficient  Number  of  Subscriptions  whereby  the  Printer  may  be 
enabled  to  carry  on  and  continue  it's  Publication. 

'THOSE  Gentlemen  who  are  pleased  to  commence  Subscribers,  may 
depend  on  the  most  safe  and  speedy  Conveyance  of  then'  respective 
Papers,  by  having  them  forwarded  to  the  Court-Houses,  and  other 
the  most  public  Places,  of  the  several  Counties  in  which  they  reside; 
especially  where  Want  of  Opportunity  renders  it  impracticable  to  send 
them  to  the  Houses  of  such  Subscribers. 

THE  Price  of  this,  Paper  to  Subscribers,  will  be  Twelve  Shillings, 
Maryland  Currency,  per  annum,  unsealed;  or  Fourteen  Shillings  if 
sealed  and  directed.  It  will  be  Printed  on  good  Paper,  and  a  beautiful 
new  Letter,  the  same  with  this  Specimen. 

ADVERTISEMENTS,  of  a  moderate  Length,  will  be  taken  in  at 
the  Printing-Office  in  Annapolis,  and  carefully  inserted  in  this  Paper, 
at  Five  Shillings  each,  the  first  Week;  and  One  Shilling  for  every  suc- 
ceeding Week,  so  long  as  continued  therein. 


BEGINNINGS  IN  COLONIES  47 

Green  at  the  time  he  started  The  Gazette  was  Public  Printer 
to  Maryland,  having  been  appointed  to  that  office  in  1740.  He 
came  from  that  New  England  family  which  was  often  distin- 
guished as  printers  in  colonial  journalism,  and  in  addition  to 
his  home  training  in  the  trade,  he  had  worked  on  both  Brad- 
ford's and  Franklin's  papers  in  Philadelphia  before  coming  to 
Maryland.  It  is  not  strange,  therefore,  that  he  made  his  Ga- 
zette,, in  typographical  appearance  at  least,  the  rival  of  any 
newspaper  of  his  day. 

Upon  Green's  death,  April  11,  1767,  The  Maryland  Gazette 
was  published  by  his  widow,  Anne  Catharine  Green,  until  the 
first  of  1768  when  she  took  her  son  William  into  partnership. 
The  latter  died  in  August,  1770,  and  his  mother  again  became 
the  publisher  until  her  death,  March  23,  1775.  Two  sons,  Fred- 
erick and  Samuel,  then  continued  The  Gazette,  which,  during 
the  War  of  the  Revolution,  did  much  to  keep  up  the  courage 
of  the  Maryland  patriots.  The  paper  was  last  published  in  1839. 

JOURNAL  FIRST  IN   SOUTH   CAROLINA 

Eleazer  Phillips,  a  New  England  printer,  went  to  South  Caro- 
lina in  1730  where  he  established  a  book  and  stationery  shop  in 
"  Charles  Town."  Associated  with  him  was  his  son,  Eleazer 
Phillips,  Jr.  The  latter  established,  on  or  near  March  4,  1730, 
The  South  Carolina  Weekly  Journal.  The  paper,  however,  failed 
to  get  enough  subscribers  to  warrant  a  continuous  publication 
and  suspended  in  about  six  months. 

WHITMARSH   AND  TIMOTHY 

The  most  important  colonial  paper  in  South  Carolina  was  The 
South  Carolina  Gazette  founded  January  8,  1732,  by  Thomas 
Whitmarsh.  Whitmarsh  died  of  yellow  fever  in  the  summer  of 
1733,  and  The  Gazette  suspended  publication  on  September  8 
of  that  year.  It  was  revived,  however,  a  year  later  by  Lewis 
Timothy  (printed  in  the  first  few  issues,  "  Lewis  Timothee"), 
a  printer  from  Philadelphia  who  had  learned  his  trade  in  the 
plant  of  Benjamin  Franklin.  Timothy  brought  out  the  first 
number  of  the  revival  on  February  2, 1734.  Timothy  was  killed 
in  an  accident  in  December,  1738.  For  about  six  years  his 


48         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

paper  was  run  by  his  widow,  Mrs.  Elizabeth  Timothy.  She  then 
sold  her  interest  to  her  son,  Peter  Timothy,  who  published  The 
South  Carolina  Gazette  uninterruptedly  until  May  7,  1772,  when, 
on  his  appointment  as  Deputy  Postmaster-General  for  the 
Southern  Provinces  of  North  America  he  leased  the  plant  to 
Powell,  Hughes  &  Company.  With  the  issue  for  November  8, 
1773,  Timothy  resumed  control  of  The  Gazette  and  was  its  pul 
lisher  until  1775,  when  the  paper  temporarily  suspended  on 
account  of  the  Revolutionary  War.  Timothy  again  revived  The 
Gazette  on  April  9,  1777,  with  the  following  change  in  title,  T) 
Gazette  of  the  State  of  South  Carolina.  When  Charleston  fell  into 
the  hands  of  the  British  in  1780,  The  Gazette  was  forced  to  sus- 
pend another  time  and  its  editor  went  into  exile  in  St.  Ai 
tine,  Florida.  Shortly  after  his  release  from  St.  Augustine 
was  drowned,  but  his  wife  revived  the  paper  on  March  28,  1785, 
with  another  change  in  title,  The  State  Gazette  of  South  Carolina. 
Mrs.  Timothy,  following  the  example  set  by  her  mother-in-law, 
sold  the  paper  in  1790  to  her  son,  Benjamin  Franklin  Timothy, 
who  changed  the  name  to  The  South  Carolina  State  Gazette  and 
Timothy  and  Mason's  Daily  Advertiser.  Timothy  was  associated 
with  the  paper  until  its  final  suspension  in  1802. 

Not  to  be  confused  with  the  paper  just  mentioned  was  The 
South  Carolina  Weekly  Gazette  at  " Charles  Town,"  started  by 
Robert  Wells,  on  November  1,  1758.  Wells  was  on  good  terms 
with  the  British,  for  when  the  city  fell  into  their  hands  he  was 
allowed  to  continue  publication  of  his  paper  under  the  title, 
The  Royal  Gazette.  Volume  I,  Number  1,  of  The  Royal  Edition 
appeared  on  March  3,  1781.  A  year  later,  when  Charleston 
was  evacuated  by  the  British,  the  paper  ceased  publication. 

J.    FRANKLIN   IN   RHODE   ISLAND 

After  James  Franklin,  the  founder  of  The  New-England  Weekly 
Courant,  left  Boston,  he  went  to  Newport,  Rhode  Island,  where 
on  September  27,  1732,  he  established  The  Rhode  Island  Ga- 
zette. It  was  the  first  newspaper  in  that  State,  and  while  it 
made  a  heroic  struggle  for  existence,  it  only  lasted  eight  months. 
After  Franklin's  death  his  wife,  Anne  Franklin,  made  several 
unsuccessful  attempts  to  revive  the  paper. 


BEGINNINGS  IN  COLONIES  49 

The  Franklin  imprint,  however,  appeared  on  the  second  news- 
paper in  Rhode  Island,  The  Newport  Mercury,  founded  in  New- 
port on  June  19,  1758,  by  James  Franklin,  Jr.  When  the  son 
died  in  1762,  his  mother,  Anne  Franklin,  continued  The  Mer- 
cury for  a  brief  time  until  she  went  into  partnership  with  Samuel 
Hale.  Upon  her  death  in  1763  Hale  ran  the  paper  most  success- 
fully, as  he  was  one  of  the  first  editors  and  publishers  to  realize 
that  advertising  depends  upon  circulation  for  its  value. 

GODDARD'S  FIRST  PAPER 

William  Goddard,  a  name  frequently  found  in  colonial  jour- 
nalism, started  the  third  paper  in  Rhode  Island  on  October 
20,  1762.  He  called  his  paper  The  Providence  Gazette  and  Coun- 
try Journal.  Goddard  had  difficulty  as  usual  in  collecting  pay- 
ments for  subscriptions,  and  on  May  11, 1765,  was  forced  to  sus- 
pend temporarily,  but  intended  to  revive  the  paper  six  months 
later,  providing  the  stamp  duties  did  not  make  such  a  resump- 
tion impossible.  The  permanent  revival,  however,  did  not  be- 
gin until  August  9,  1766,  and  an  editorial  note  informed  the 
reading  public  that  the  paper  was  now  in  the  hands  of  Sarah 
Goddard  &  Company.  Leaving  his  paper  thus  in  the  hands  of 
his  mother,  William  Goddard  went  to  New  York  to  seek  em- 
ployment, but  sent  Samuel  Inslee,  who  later  became  a  pub- 
lisher of  a  New  York  colonial  paper,  to  Providence  to  help  Mrs. 
Goddard.  On  November  12,  1768,  the  paper  passed  into  the 
hands  of  John  Carter,  who  had  worked  in  the  office  of  Benjamin 
Franklin  in  Philadelphia,  and  later  became  a  partner  of  Mrs. 
Goddard  in  the  business.  Carter  made  numerous  improvements 
in  the  paper  and  ordered  new  type  from  England.  Before  it 
could  reach  Providence,  however,  the  Revolutionary  War  was 
well  on  its  way,  so  that  when  the  type  finally  reached  New 
York  it  was  confiscated  by  the  custom-house  authorities  of 
that  city.  The  Gazette  was  one  of  the  first  papers  to  realize  the 
importance  of  the  battle  of  Lexington.  In  an  account,  which 
occupied  nine  inches  of  space  in  The  Gazette,  its  editor  made 
this  significant  statement:  "  Thus  is  commenced  the  American 
Civil  War." 


50         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

VIRGINIA  —  MOTHER  OF  GAZETTES 

One  reason  why  Virginia  did  not  have  a  newspaper  earlier 
than  1736  will  be  found  in  an  assertion  of  Sir  William  Berkeley 
who  was  Governor  of  the  Colony  for  thirty-eight  years.  In  his 
report  to  the  Lords  of  the  Committee  for  the  Colonies  in  1671 
he  said:  " I  thank  God  we  have  not  free  schools  nor  printing;  and 
I  hope  we  shall  not  have  these  hundred  years.  For  learning  has 
brought  disobedience  and  heresy,  and  sects  into  the  world;  and 
printing  has  divulged  them  and  libels  against  the  government. 
God  keep  us  from  both."  On  August  6,  1736,  however,  William 
Parks  brought  out  at  Williamsburg  The  Virginia  Gazette.  This 
first  paper  in  Virginia  has  been  described  as  "  a  small  dingy  sheet, 
containing  a  few  items  of  foreign  news,  the  ads  of  Williams- 
burg  shopkeepers,  notices  of  the  arrival  and  departure  of  ships; 
a  few  chance  particulars  relating  to  persons  or  affairs  in  the 
colony;  and  poetical  effusions  celebrating  the  charms  of  Myr- 
tilla,  Florella  or  other  belles  of  the  period. " 

Parks  was  made  "Printer  to  the  Colony,"  at  a  salary  of  two 
hundred  pounds  —  payable  in  tobacco,  the  currency  of  the 
time.  If  he  was  unsuccessful  in  establishing  his  paper  on  a  per- 
manent basis,  it  was  through  no  fault  of  his,  but  due  to  the 
opposition  to  a  free  press  in  the  colony.  In  his  announcement 
Parks  stated  a  subscription  price  of  fifteen  shillings  per  annum, 
and  after  commenting  on  the  newspapers  published  in  the  other 
colonies,  he  said:  "From  these  examples  and  the  encouragement 
of  several  gentlemen  on  the  prospect  I  have  of  success  in  this 
ancient  and  best  settled  colony  of  Virginia,  I  am  induced  to 
send  forth  weekly  newspapers  here,  —  not  doubting  to  meet 
with  as  good  encouragement  as  others,  or  at  least  as  may  en- 
able me  to  carry  them  on." 

The  Gazette  published  by  William  Parks  is  not  to  be  confused 
with  The  Virginia  Gazette  started  on  January  3,  1751,  by  Wil- 
liam Hunter  —  though  the  latter  may  be  in  a  certain  sense 
considered  as  a  revival  of  the  first  paper  in  Virginia.  With 
^sue  Number  52,  on  December  27,  1751,  Hunter  said:  — 

This  paper  concludes  the  first  year  of  The  Gazette  publication  and  as 
'     I  have  been  at  a  great  expense,  as  well  in  printing  as  sending  them  to  clif- 


BEGINNINGS  IN  COLONIES  51 

ferent  parts  of  the  country,  by  special  messengers,  I  hope  ray  customers 
will  favor  me  with  their  subscription  money  as  soon  as  possible  that  I 
may  be  enabled  to  continue  them  —  I  am  sensible  there  are  many  who 
complain  of  not  getting  their  papers  so  regular  as  they  desire,  but  hope 
they  will  be  kind  enough  to  excuse  it,  when  they  consider  the  many  in- 
conveniences the  colony  labours  under  both  in  this  and  other  respects, 
for  want  of  regular  post  through  the  country.  However,  as  we  daily 
expect  the  arrival  of  a  postmaster-General,  we  have  no  reason  to  doubt, 
but  that  the  Post-Office  will  be  regulated  in  such  a  manner  as  will  give 
content.  In  the  mean  time,  as  I  shall  do  all  in  my  power  to  dispatch 
the  Gazettes,  as  well  by  different  posts,  as  favourable  opportunities, 
hope  my  customers  will  continue  their  favours,  and  oblige  their  very..- 
humble  servant,  The  Printer. 

The  second  Virginia  Gazette  was  a  great  improvement  on  the 
first.  Hunter  was  postmaster  and  had  better  opportunities  to 
gather  news.  In  addition,  his  Gazette  was  better  edited.  In  its 
columns  appeared  some  of  the  best-written  essays  of  the  Colo- 
nial Period.  For  instance,  in  1757  a  man,  under  the  signature 
of  "The  Virginia  Sentinel,"  published  a  contribution  which 
showed  that  Virginia  in  spite  of  its  early  opposition  to  the  press 
was  not  without  literary  talent. 

A  third  Virginia  Gazette  was  brought  out  in  Williamsburg 
in  May,  1766,  by  William  Rind  with  a  motto  "Open  to  all 
Parties,  Influenced  by  None."  Rind  began  his  Gazette  with  the 
cooperation  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  who  considered  the  old  Ga- 
zettes too  much  under  the  influence  of  the  Government. 

A  fourth  Gazette  was  started  in  Williamsburg  on  February  3, 
1775,  by  Alexander  Purdy  and  was  conducted  by  him  until 
1779.  Its  motto  was,  "Always  for  Liberty  and  the  Public  Good."\ 
This  particular  Virginia  Gazette  has  the  honor  of  being  the  first 
American  newspaper  to  print  the  full  text  of  the  Declaration  of  / 
Independence  which  it  did  on  July  26,  1776. 

EARLY   CONNECTICUT   PAPERS 

The  Connecticut  Gazette,  the  first  paper  in  Connecticut,  made 
its  appearance  on  April  12,  1755,  at  New  Haven.  The  first  num- 
ber bore  the  imprint,  "Printed  by  James  Parker  at  the  Post- 
Office  near  the  Sign  of  the  White  Horse."  Benjamin  Franklin 
had  been  induced  by  President  Clap  to  purchase  a  printing- 


52         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 


plant  with  a  view  to  establishing  the  former's  nephew,  Benja- 
min Mecom,  in  business  at  New  Haven.  The  material  arrived 
in  the  fall  of  1754,  but  Mecom  changed  his  plans  and  Parker  was 
secured  to  take  up  the  work.  Associated  with  Parker  in  The 
Connecticut  Gazette  was  John  Holt,  who  had  the  title  of  editor 
and  was  a  junior  partner  of  the  firm  of  James  Parker  &  Com- 
pany. In  1764  The  Gazette  was  suspended  for  a  short  time,  but 
was  afterwards  revived  by  Benjamin  Mecom  on  July  5, 1765.  In 
an  editorial  announcement  Mecom  added  the  following  statement 
about  subscriptions:  "All  kinds  of  Provisions,  Fire  Wood  and 
other  suitable  country  Produce  will  be  taken  as  pay  of  those  who 
cannot  spare  money,  if  delivered  at  the  Printer's  Dwelling 
House,  or  at  any  other  place  which  may  accidentally  suit  him." 

On  August  8,  1758,  Timothy  Green  the  second  brought  out 
The  New  London  Summary,  or  the  Weekly  Advertiser,  at  New  Lon- 
don. Green  died  on  the  3d  of  August,  1763,  and  the  paper  was 
suspended  for  three  weeks.  Afterward  it  was  revived  by  Tim- 
othy Green,  the  third  printer  of  that  name  in  New  London, 
under  the  title,  The  New  London  Gazette. 

More  important  than  either  of  these  two  Connecticut  papers 
was  The  Connecticut  Courant,  first  printed  by  Thomas  Green  at 
the  Heart  and  Crown,  near  the  North  Meeting-House  in  Hart- 
ford, on  Monday,  October  29, 1764.  This  first  issue  was  prospec- 
tus, having  the  number  of  00.  The  first  regular  issue,  however, 
was  on  December  3,  1764.  During  the  War  of  the  Revolution 
The  Connecticut  Courant  occupied  a  rather  important  place  in 
the  journalism  of  the  time.  The  British  troops  who  took  pos- 
session of  New  York  had  driven  from  that  city  all  the  patriotic 
printers,  with  the  result  that  the  circulation  of  The  Courant  was 
greatly  increased,  so  much  so  that  in  all  probability  it  was 
greater  than  that  of  any  other  colonial  newspaper  then  printed. 
The  paper  has  continued  down  to  the  present  time  and  now 
bears  the  title  of  The  Hartford  Courant. 

On  October  23,  1767,  Thomas  and  Samuel  Green  brought 
out  in  New  Haven  the  first  number  of  The  Connecticut  Journal 
and  New  Haven  Post-Boy.  After  passing  into  the  hands  of  many 
publishers  the  paper  was  discontinued  on  April  7,  1835.  On 
July  3,  1776,  The  Connecticut  Journal  published  the  following 


. 


BEGINNINGS  IN  COLONIES  53 

note:  "We  are  very  sorry  that  we  cannot  procure  a  sufficiency 
of  paper  to  publish  a  whole  sheet;  —  but  as  there  is  now  a  paper- 
mill  erecting  in  this  town,  we  expect  after  a  few  weeks,  to  be 
supplied  with  such  a  quantity  as  to  publish  the  Journal  regu- 
larly on  a  uniform  sized  paper,  and  to  be  able  to  make  ample 
amends  for  past  deficiencies."  In  spite  of  its  fairly  long  life  the 
paper  passed  through  the  usual  newspaper  difficulties  of  the 
period.  Some  of  the  earliest  issues  were  even  smaller  than  that 
of  the  common  letter  paper. 

Pretentious,  at  least  in  name,  was  The  Norwich  Packet  and 
the  Connecticut,  Massachusetts,  New  Hampshire,  Rhode  Island 
Weekly  Advertiser,  first  brought  out  on  September  30,  1773,  by 
Alexander  Robertson,  James  Robertson,  and  John  Trumbull. 
Three  years  later  Trumbull  became  the  sole  proprietor  and  the 
Robertsons  began  publishing  papers  elsewhere. 

ATTEMPTS   OF  DAVIS   IN   NORTH   CAROLINA 

In  1755  Benjamin  Franklin,  then  Postmaster-General  for 
the  Colonies,  appointed  James  Davis,  who  had  emigratecLfrom 
Virginia,  to  North  Carolina,  postmaster  at  Newbern.  follow- 
ing the  example  set  by  the  colonial  postmasters  of  Boston,  the 
latter  established  the  same  year  The  North  Carolina  Gazette.  It 
bore  the  following  imprint:  "NewbenK^Printed  by  James 
Davis,  at  the  Printing-office  in  Front  Street;  where  all  persons 
may  be  supplied  with  this  paper  at  Sixteen  Shillings  per  annum : 
And  when  Advertisements  of  a  moderate  length  are  inserted  for 
Three  Shillings  the  first  Week  and  Two  Shillings  for  every  week 
after.  And  where  also  Book-Binding  is  done  reasonably."  Pub- 
lished on  Thursdays,  it  usually  appeared  on  a  sheet  pot  size 
folio.  Number  200  of  this  paper  was  dated  October  18,  1759, 
and  did  not  colonial  editors  frequently  skip  a  week  and  often  mix 
up  their  numbering  it  would  be  an  easy  matter  to  figure  out  by 
the  help  of  old  almanacs  the  Thursday  in  1755  when  this,  the 
first  paper  in  North  Carolina,  made  its  bow  to  Newbern.  It 
was  published  about  six  years. 

Davis  made_his  second  attempt  to  found  a  paper  in  1764.  He 
called  the  new  venture  The  North  Carolina  Magazine,  or  Univer- 
sal Intelligencer.  (Its  name  was  somewhat  misleading,  as  the 


54         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

sheet  appeared  weekly  on  Fridays.)  The  first  number  was  dated 
Friday,  June  1,  to  Friday,  June  8,  1764.  The  price  per  copy  was 
four  pence:  at  the  end  of  1764  there  was  a  reduction  in  size  of 
one  half,  but  no  reduction  in  price. 

Evidently  the  second  venture  was  not  so  successful  as  the 
first,  for  on  May  27,  1768,  Davis  revived  The  North  Carolina 
Gazette.  This  second  Gazette,  with  intermittent  publication, 
lasted  a  little  over  ten  years.  The  word  " intermittent"  is  used, 
since  the  issue  for  March  27,  1778,  asserted  that  the  third  day 
of  April  next  completed  a  year  of  publication  since  the  paper 
was  last  resumed.  The  last  known  issue  has  the  date  of  No- 
vember 30,  1778. 

Davis  made  still  another  attempt  to  found  a  North  Carolina 
Gazette.  The  last  was  on  August  28,  1783,  two  years  before  his 
death.  His  reason  sheds  considerable  light  on  North  Carolina 
journalism  for  the  Colonial  Period:  " There  has  not  been  a  news- 
paper published  in  North  Carolina  for  several  years."  This  third 
Gazette  by  Davis  was  an  interesting  example  of  newspaper- 
making,  for  it  had  neither  headlines  nor  column  rules.  Possibly 
the  reason  why  Davis  was  so  unsuccessful  in  establishing  a  per- 
manent paper  may  be  found  in  the  fact  that  he  printed  so  little 
local  news.  Associated  with  Davis  hi  this  last  enterprise  was 
Robert  Keith,  who  came  from  Pennsylvania.  The  full  name  of 
the  paper  was  The  North  Carolina  Gazette,  or  Impartial  Intelli- 
gencer and  Weekly  General  Advertiser. 


STEWAKT  —  "PKINTEK  TO   THE   KING" 


5An- 


The  second  newspaper  publisher  in  North  Carolina  was 
drew  Stewart.  Born  in  Belfast,  Ireland,  he,  like  many  of  the 
early  printers,  had  come  to  America  to  seek  his  fortune,  and  in 
1758  or  1759  had  set  up  a  press  in  Laetitia  Court,  Philadelphia, 
where  he  ran  a  bookstore  along  with  his  print-shop.  Reaching 
Wilmington,  North  Carolina,  June  24,  1764,  with  a  part  of  his 
Philadelphia  equipment,  he  announced  himself  as  "  Printer  to 
the  King."  There  is  good  reason  to  believe  that  his  bluff  worked 
and  that  he  got  part  of  the  public  printing.  In  September, 
1764,  he  brought  out  the  first  number  of  The  North  Carolina 
Gazette  and  Weekly  Post-Boy.  Wilmington  was  a  better  news 


BEGINNINGS  IN  COLONIES  55 

center  than  Newbern,  and  Stewart  printed,  for  the  time,  many 
local  items,  but  the  paper  did  not  take  with  the  public  and  was 
discontinued  for  lack  of  support  in  1767. 

The  second  newspaper  in  Wilmington  was  The  Cape  Fear 
Mercury  and  was  published  by  Adam  Boyd.  Number  7  had  the 
date  of  November  24,  1769,  and  if  there  were  no  omissions  in 
weekly  publication,  the  first  appearance  must  have  been  on 
October  13, 1769.  An  examination  of  the  early  issues  shows  that 
Boyd  was  not  a  practical  printer,  as  his  typography  was  very 
poor:  yet  the  paper  survived  till  the  War  of  the  Revolution 
broke  out,  being  printed  on  the  press  and  with  the  type  that 
formerly  belonged  to  Stewart. 

ORIGIN   OF  JOURNALISM   IN   NEW  HAMPSHIRE 

New  Hampshire  got  its  first  newspaper  in  a  rather  unique 
way.  Daniel  Fowle,  after  he  left  The  Independent  Advertiser  of 
Boston,  opened  a  small  shop  on  Anne  Street,  where  he  sold 
books  and  pamphlets  in  addition  to  doing  odd  jobs  on  his  press. 
Arrested  in  1754  on  the  suspicion  of  having  printed  "The  Mon- 
ster of  Monsters,"  said  to  be  a  reflection  on  the  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives, and  later  sent  to  jail  for  having  sold  a  few  copies, 
he  became  disgusted  with  the  Government  of  Massachusetts. 
At  the  psychological  moment,  to  use  a  modern  expression,  a  call 
came  from  New  Hampshire  to  come  over  and  start  a  paper  in 
that  colony.  The  call  was  answered  by  his  removal  to  Ports- 
mouth where  he  brought  out  Volume  I,  Number  1,  of  The  New 
Hampshire  Gazette  on  October  7,  1756. 

On  November  1,  1765,  The  Gazette  came  out  with  the  usual 
black  border,  like  so  many  other  papers  of  the  same  time,  and 
announced  that  it  would  cease  publication  because  its  printers 
were  unwilling  to  pay  the  obnoxious  stamp  tax.  During  the  War 
of  the  Revolution  the  paper  was  published  rather  irregularly 
and  only  slightly  leaned  toward  the  American  cause.  In  1776  it 
printed  a  communication  urging  the  Provincial  Congress  not 
to  establish  an  independent  government  because  such  a  pro- 
ceeding might  be  taken  as  a  desire  to  throw  off  British  rule. 
The  editor  was  at  once  summoned  before  the  Provincial  Con- 
gress, severely  censured,  and  admonished  never  in  the  future 


56         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

to  publish  articles  reflecting  upon  the  Continental  Congress  or 
the  cause  of  American  independence. 

PAPER   OF   PATRIOTS 

The  Portsmouth  Mercury  and  Weekly  Advertiser,  the  second 
newspaper,  came  from  the  press  of  Thomas  Ferber  at  his  "New 
Printing  Office  Near  the  Parade,"  in  Portsmouth,  on  January 
21,  1765.  The  paper  was  started  because  of  dissatisfaction  of 
some  of  the  ardent  patriots  who  thought  the  first  paper  was 
not  sufficiently  strong  for  American  rights.  In  spite  of  the  fact 
that  the  new  paper  said  it  stood  "Ever  ready  in  exposing 
arbitrary  powers,  public  injuries  and  all  attempts  to  prevent 
the  liberties  of  the  people  —  dearer  to  them  than  their  rights," 
it  did  not  carry  out  its  policy  and  consequently  failed  to  obtain 
sufficient  circulation  to  make  the  venture  profitable.  It  was 
accordingly  discontinued  in  about  three  years. 


FIRST  VENTURES   IN   DELAWARE 

James  Adams,  a  native  of  Ireland,  was  the  publisher  of  The 
Wilmington  Chronicle,  the  first  newspaper  in  Delaware.  After 
working  for  about  seven  years  in  the  office  of  Franklin  &  Hall 
in  Philadelphia,  he  set  up  a  press  in  that  city,  but  a  year  later 
(1761)  he  moved  to  Wilmington,  where  he  first  printed  books 
and  almanacs.  In  1762  he  started  The  Chronicle,  but  failed  to 
get  enough  subscribers  to  make  the  venture  profitable  and  after 
six  months  discontinued  the  sheet. 

The  second  newspaper  was  also  started  in  Wilmington  in 
June,  1785,  by  Jacob  A.  Killen.  He  called  his  paper  The  Dela- 
ware Gazette;  or  The  Faithful  Centinel.  The  few  copies  of  the 
early  issues  which  have  been  preserved  show  that  the  paper  had 
numerous  variations  in  its  title.  From  1787  to  1791  the  pub- 
lishers were  Frederick  Craig  &  Company.  On  March  5  of  the 
latter  year,  the  partnership  was  dissolved  and  the  paper  con- 
tinued by  Peter  Brynberg  and  Samuel  Andrews  —  "late  part- 
ners with  Frederick  Craig."  The  editorial  policy  of  The  Gazette 
was  outlined  in  its  issue  for  April  2,  1791,  as  follows:  "Particu- 
lar attention  will  be  paid  to  agriculture  and  all  communications 
(post  paid)  will  be  gratefully  received  and  punctually  attended 


BEGINNINGS  IN  COLONIES  57 

to.  Political  pieces,  with  spirit  and  candor,  in  which  measures 
rather  than  men,  are  attacked  will  always  have  a  place  in  this 
paper.  For  the  poet  —  a  corner  is  ever  open :  and  the  mathe- 
matician will  not  be  neglected."  In  September,  1795,  the  paper 
became  a  semi-weekly.  With  the  issue  of  March  8,  1796,  the 
imprint  became  "Printed  for  Robert  Coram  by  Bonsai  &  Starr," 
and  the  same  year  it  was  again  changed  to  "Printed  by  W.  C. 
Smyth,  rear  of  the  New  Fire-Engine,  Shipley  Street,  opposite 
Capt.  O'Flinn's  Tavern."  The  Gazette  was  discontinued  with 
the  issue  of  September  7,  1799.  The  last  issue,  however,  an- 
nounced a  successor  in  The  Mirror  of  the  Times,  to  be  published 
a  little  later  by  James  Wilson.  After  the  failure  of  The  Chron- 
icle, James  Adams  took  his  son  Samuel  into  partnership  and 
started  the  third  paper,  The  Delaware  Courant  and  Wilmington 
Advertiser,  in  September,  1786.  It  appeared  weekly  and  sur- 
vived about  three  years. 

The  fourth  paper,  The  Delaware  and  Eastern  Shore  Advertiser, 
was  established  in  Wilmington  on  May  14,  1794,  by  S.  and  J. 
Adams  and  W.  C.  Smyth.  With  the  issue  of  March  18,  1795, 
Smyth  withdrew  from  the  partnership  in  order  to  associate  him- 
self with  The  Delaware  Gazette,  as  has  already  been  mentioned. 
On  Thursday,  August  1,  1799,  the  paper  appeared  without  the 
name  of  the  publisher  and  in  all  probability  that  issue  was  the 
last. 

PAPER   POORLY   SUPPORTED 

The  Mirror  of  The  Times  and  General  Advertiser,  mention  of 
which  was  made  in  the  last  issue  of  The  Delaware  Gazette,  was 
the  fifth  paper  in  Delaware,  and  was  started  in  Wilmington, 
Delaware,  on  November  20,  1799,  by  James  Wilson  as  a  Federal 
paper.  It  incidentally  attracted  a  great  deal  of  attention  be- 
cause it  was  the  first  newspaper  in  America  to  be  printed  on 
pure  white  paper  especially  prepared  by  a  bleaching  process  dis- 
covered by  Thomas  D.  Gilpin,  of  Wilmington.  Its  motto  told 
the  following  tale :  — 

Here  sovereign  truth  for  man's  just  rights  contends, 
Alike  unawed  by  foes,  unswayed  by  friends. 


58         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

/  Wilson,  like  other  colonial  printers,  had  the  same  "  hard-luck 
tale"  to  record  in  his  paper.  In  1802,  shortly  after  the  New  Cas- 
tle County  election,  he  announced  to  his  friends  and  patrons 
that  he  would  spend  the  day  at  Captain  Caleb  Bennett's  Tav- 
ern, in  New  Castle,  where  he  "  would  wait  with  his  account- 
books  open,"  hoping  that  all  subscribers  will  call  on  him  and 
inquire  after  the  condition  of  his  purse  which  was  affected  by  a 
lingering  consumptive  complaint.  The  lingering  complaint  evi- 
dently proved  fatal,  for  publication  was  suspended  on  August 
22,  1806. 

GAZETTES  IN  GEORGIA 

For  thirty  years,  after  Georgia  was  founded,  the  colony  de- 
pended for  its  news  upon  the  papers  of  South  Carolina,  and  its 
merchants  were  forced  to  advertise  their  goods  in  Charleston 
papers.  On  April  7,  1763,  however,  the  first  number  of  The 
Georgia  Gazette  was  issued  at  Savannah  by  James  Johnson  at 
his  printing-office  on  Broughton  Street.  On  November  21,  1765, 
it  suspended  publication  on  account  of  the  Stamp  Act,  but  was 
revived  again  on  May  21,  1766,  and  lasted  as  late  as  February 
7,  1776,  —  possibly  a  little  longer. 

The  second  paper  is  not  to  be  confused  with  the  first,  although 
it  bore  a  somewhat  similar  title.  It  was  called  The  Royal  Georgia 
Gazette  and  was  started  in  Savannah  on  January  21,  1781,  by 
John  D.  Hammerer  and  survived  until  well  along  in  1782.  From 
1781  the  paper  was  published  by  James  Johnson  —  a  fact  which 
has  caused  some  confusion  because  he  was  the  founder  of  the 
first  paper. 

On  January  31,  1783,  Johnson  started  The  Gazette  of  the  State 
of  Georgia  —  the  third  Gazette  with  which  he  was  connected. 
He  later  shortened  the  name  to  The  Georgia  Gazette,  the  name  of 
his  first-born  paper.  Under  this  title  the  paper  long  continued 
to  be  published  save  for  a  temporary  suspension  on  account  of 
the  great  Savannah  fire  in  1796. 

Such,  in  brief,  was  the  history  of  the  journalism  enterprises 
in  Georgia  until  the  colonies  secured  their  independence. 


BEGINNINGS  IN  COLONIES  59 

TARDY   PAPERS   IN   NEW  JERSEY 

The  first  printed  newspapers  did  not  appear  in  New  Jersey 
until  the  War  of  the  Revolution  had  started.  But  it  is  not  hard 
to  explain  this  tardy  appearance:  Philadelphia  and  New  York 
newspapers  circulated  then,  as  they  do  to-day,  through  New 
Jersey.  The  suspension  of  some  of  these  papers,  the  removal  of 
others  to  distant  points,  the  increase  in  subscription  price,  the 
poor  delivery  by  post-riders,  many  of  whom  were  in  active  mili- 
tary service  —  all  these  things,  coupled  with  the  exciting  events 
of  the  War,  created  an  independent  demand  for  news  on  the 
part  of  the  patriots  of  New  Jersey.  Its  Governor,  William  Liv- 
ingston, knowing,  in  addition  to  the  facts  just  mentioned,  how 
useful  a  newspaper  could  be  to  arouse  local  public  sentiment, 
made  the  following  plea  in  a  message  to  the  Colonial  Legisla- 
ture October  11,  1777:  — 

Gentlemen:  It  would  be  an  unnecessary  Consumption  of  Time  to 
enumerate  all  the  Advantages  that  would  redound  to  the  State  from 
having  a  Weekly  News-Paper  printed  and  circulated  in  it.  —  To  facili- 
tate such  an  Undertaking,  it  is  proposed  that  the  first  Paper  be  circu- 
lated as  soon  as  seven  hundred  subscribers,  whose  Punctuality  in  pay- 
ing may  be  relied  upon,  shall  be  procured:  Or  if  Government  will  insure 
seven  hundred  subscribers  who  shall  pay,  the  Work  will  be  immedi- 
ately begun;  and  if  at  the  End  of  six  Months  there  shall  be  seven  hun- 
dred or  more  subscribers  who  will  pay  punctually,  the  Claim  upon  the 
Government  to  cease.  But  if  the  subscribers  fall  short  of  that  Number, 
Government  to  become  a  subscriber  so  as  to  make  up  that  Number. 
The  Price  in  these  fluctuating  Times  can  hardly  be  ascertained,  but  it 
is  supposed  it  cannot  at  present  be  less  than  Twenty-six  shillings  per 
Year,  which  will  be  but  six  Pence  a  Paper. 

STATE-SUBSIDIZED   NEWSPAPER 

A  committee,  to  whom  the  matter  was  referred,  brought  in  the 
following  recommendations  which  were  adopted:  (1)  A  paper 
to  be  printed  weekly,  in  four  folio  pages,  and  entitled  The  New- 
Jersey  Gazette;  (2)  price  to  be  twenty-six  shillings  per  year;  (3) 
the  Legislature  to  guarantee  seven  hundred  subscribers  within 
six  months ;  (4)  a  cross-post  to  be  established  from  the  printing- 
office,  to  the  nearest  Continental  post-office  at  the  expense  of 


60         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

the  State;  (5)  the  printer  and  four  workmen  to  be  exempted 
from  service  in  the  militia.  The  printer  selected  for  this  State- 
subsidized  newspaper  —  one  of  the  very  few  in  the  history  of 
American  journalism  —  was  Isaac  Collins,  who  already  had  a 
plant  at  Burlington.  He  was  a  native  of  New  Castle  County, 
Delaware,  where  he  was  born  "2d  mo.  16,  1746"  (Old  Style). 
Learning  his  trade  in  the  shop  of  James  Adams,  Wilmington, 
Delaware  (see  " Delaware  Papers"),  he  had  gone  to  Williams- 
burg,  Virginia,  to  work  for  William  Rind  (see  "Virginia  Papers  "). 
His  most  practical  experience,  however,  he  had  obtained  in 
Philadelphia  while  in  the  employ  of  William  Goddard,  the  pub- 
lisher of  The  Pennsylvania  Chronicle. 

Collins,  immediately  after  his  selection  for  the  position,  began 
to  make  preparation  to  bring  out  the  paper,  but  owing  to  the 
unsettled  condition  of  the  country  he  was  not  able  to  "pull" 
the  first  number  off  his  press  until  December  5,  1777.  With  the 
issue  of  March  4,  1778,  he  took  The  New- Jersey  Gazette  to  Tren- 
ton. Contrary  to  his  expectations,  the  paper  was  not  better 
supported  at  that  place  and  at  last  suspended  publication  in 
July,  1783.  Collins,  however,  was  a  plucky  editor  and  made  an 
attempt  to  revive  The  Gazette  on  December  9,  1783.  He  strug- 
gled along  until  November  27,  1786,  when  he  brought  out  the 
last  issue.  He  still  continued  his  shop  at  Trenton,  for  the  politi- 
cal plum  of  public  printing  had  fallen  into  the  lap  of  his  apron. 

Before  he  discontinued  The  New-Jersey  Gazette,  he  was  selling 
at  his  printing-office  medicinal  preparations,  dry  goods,  grocer- 
ies, etc. :  a  complete  list  would  read  like  an  advertisement  in  a 
country  four-corners  store.  He  also  received  a  commission  on 
the  negro  boys  and  wenches  whose  sales  he  effected  through  the 
columns  of  his  paper.  He  died  at  Burlington,  New  Jersey,  March 
21,  1817. 

"JERSEY  JOURNAL" 

Two  circumstances  account  for  the  appearance  of  the  second 
newspaper  in  New  Jersey.  One  was  that  when  New  York  fell 
into  the  hands  of  the  British  the  newspapers  which  continued 
publication  there  were  loyal  to  the  Crown:  the  second  was  that 
the  army  of  General  Washington  at  Morristown  wanted  a  paper 


BEGINNINGS  IN  COLONIES  61 

to  tell  the  news  of  what  the  colonies  outside  of  New  Jersey  were 
doing.  Undoubtedly  the  latter  was  the  more  important,  for 
Shepard  Kollock,  a  printer  at  Chatham,  who,  like  Collins,  had 
learned  the  trade  with  James  Adams  at  Wilmington,  started, 
at  the  suggestion  of  General  Knox,  The  New-Jersey  Journal  on 
February  16,  1779.  The  soldiers  only  five  miles  away  subscribed 
liberally,  considering  how  pitifully  small  were  the  wages  re- 
ceived, and  the  officers  often  furnished,  in  exchange  for  army 
printing,  the  paper  upon  which  The  Journal  was  printed. 

At  the  end  of  the  Revolution,  Kollock,  finding  himself  in  a 
place  too  small  to  support  a  newspaper,  went  to  New  Bruns- 
wick, where,  on  October  14, 1783,  he  started,  with  Shelly  Arnett, 
The  Political  Intelligencer  and  New- Jersey  Advertiser  "at  the 
Barracks,"  a  building  used  to  shelter  British  troops  in  colonial 
days.  The  partnership  was  dissolved  in  July,  1784,  and  he  be- 
came the  sole  owner.  On  April  20,  1785,  Kollock  brought  out 
his  newspaper  in  "Elizabeth  Town."  With  Number  134,  or  on 
May  10,  1786,  he  changed  its  title  to  The  New- Jersey  Journal 
and  Political  Intelligencer.  It  still  survives  as  The  Elizabeth  Daily 
Journal  The  change  in  name  from  The  New-Jersey  Journal  was 
made  when  the  paper  became  a  daily  on  July  17,  1871. 


CHAPTER   VI  \ 
COLONIAL  PERIOD 
1704—1765 


THE  colonial  editor,  to  whom  journalism  was  a  trade  rather 
than  a  profession,  found  many  difficulties  in  publishing  his 
paper.  In  the  first  place,  it  was  hard  for  him  to  get  stock,  for 
most  of  the  paper  on  which  he  printed  the  news  was  imported 
from  Europe,  or  was  secured  with  difficulty  from  the  few  paper- 
mills  established  in  this  country.  The  year  1690,  which  saw  the 
appearance  in  Boston  of  Publick  Occurrences,  also  saw  the  es- 
tablishment at  Germantown,  Pennsylvania,  of  the  first  paper- 
mill  in  the  colonies.  Other  mills  were  erected  so  that  the  town 
became  the  early  home  of  the  paper  industry  in  America.  In 
one  of  them,  William  Bradford  by  1697  had  a  fourth  interest. 
When  he  came  to  New  York  and  started  his  Gazette,  he  met  the 
same  difficulty  in  getting  paper  for  his  press  that  he  had  pre- 
viously experienced  in  Philadelphia,  but  found  relief  by  start- 
ing in  1728  a  paper-mill  at  "  Elizabeth  Town,"  New  Jersey. 
In  1730  a  paper-mill  was  erected  at  Milton,  Massachusetts, 
and  soon  had  a  monopoly  of  the  trade  around  Boston.  Some- 
times the  newspaper  had  to  establish  its  own  mill.  Such  was 
true  of  The  Connecticut  Courant,  at  Hartford.  While  this  news- 
paper secured  its  own  paper  from  Norwich,  the  droughts  in 
summer  or  ice  in  the  river  in  winter  frequently  curtailed  the 
size  of  the  sheet.  Other  newspapers,  by  inserting  advertise- 
ments of  "Rags  Wanted/'  supplied  the  mills  with  material  from 
which  the  paper  was  made. 

TYPOGRAPHY   OF   PAPERS      ^ 

The  size  of  the  newspaper  has  been  so  frequently  given  in  con- 
nection with  the  mention  of  individual  papers  that  little  more 
needs  to  be  said.  From  1704  to  1765  newspapers  were  gener- 
ally printed  on  half-sheets.  Shapes  and  sizes  varied  greatly, 


COLONIAL  PERIOD  63 

not  only  because  of  the  scarcity  of  news  of  the  various  towns, 
but  more  frequently  because  of  the  scarcity  of  paper.  In  spite 
of  his  meager  equipment  the  colonial  printer  seldom  found 
it  necessary,  even  when  he  gave  his  reader  two  whole  sheets, 
to  use  more  than  one  variety  of  type.  Newspapers,  however, 
varied  much  in  their  style  of  typography.  One  distinctive 
mechanical  characteristic  of  the  colonial  newspaper  was  the 
frequent  use  of  a  large  initial  letter  for  the  leading  news  item  or 
essay.  From  the  beginning  of  the  printed  newspaper  in  this 
country  down  to  the  time  when  Franklin  gave  up  writing  for 
his  newspaper,  all  nouns  were  capitalized,  and  it  seemed  gen- 
erally permissible  to  capitalize  any  other  word,  at  the  printer's 
discretion.  Extracts  from  colonial  newspapers  have  been  given 
frequently  enough  in  the  preceding  pages  to  give  the  reader  a 
fairly  accurate  idea  of  the  orthography  of  the  period.  Some  edi- 
tors, usually  of  other  birth  than  English,  evidently  compiled  a 
dictionary  of  their  own  for  office  use.  John  Peter  Zengler,  for 
example,  invariably  spelled  "Monday"  in  his  date  line,  "Mun- 
day,"  but  frequently  allowed  contributors  to  spell  the  word 
"  Monday." 

PRESSES   AND   INKS  * 

In  the  tools  of  his  trade  the  colonial  printer  was  under  a 
severe  handicap.  Both  press  and  type  had  to  be  imported  from 
England,  and  in  many  instances  the  printer  because  of  his  pov- 
erty had  to  purchase  second-hand  outfits.  Such  presses  as 
were  used  were  built  practically  of  wood,  and  were  often  so  con- 
structed that  only  one  page  of  even  the  small-sized  colonial  news- 
paper could  be  printed  at  one  time.  This  handicap  made  four 
pulls  necessary  on  the  part  of  the  printer  before  he  could  pro- 
duce a  printed  newspaper  of  a  whole  sheet.  Even  in  the  case  of 
the  larger  presses,  two  impressions  were  necessary  for  every 
copy  of  the  paper.  In  other  words,  the  output  of  a  press  was 
equal  to  one  half  the  number  of  pulls  a  printer  could  give  in  an 
hour.  It  took  so  much  muscular  strength  to  pull  the  lever  of  the 
old-fashioned  press  that  the  services  of  a  man  were  required. 
The  only  help  a  boy  could  be  in  the  colonial  print-shop  was  to 
ink  the  type :  this  he  did,  in  many  instances,  with  the  help  of  a 


64         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

deerskin  ball  filled  with  wool  and  nailed  to  a  stick  of  hickory. 
Not  until  1750  were  printing-presses  manufactured  in  America: 
in  that  year,  Christopher  Sower,  Jr.,  began  to  turn  out  hand- 
presses  at  Germantown,  Pennsylvania.  Handicapped  by  the 
lack  of  skilled  labor,  he  was  even  then  only  able  to  manufacture 
presses  inferior  to  those  imported  from  Europe. 

Reliable  printing-ink  also  came  from  abroad.  Substitutes 
were  frequently  attempted  by  the  early  printers  and  were 
manufactured  from  wild  berries.  The  fading  of  the  impression 
in  some  of  the  early  colonial  papers  may  be  traced  directly  to 
the  use  of  such  substitutes.  Not  until  the  close  of  the  first  half 
of  the  eighteenth  century  was  there  a  manufacture  of  a  printers' 
ink  that  was  worth  the  name. 


MAKERS   OF   TYPE 

lie  to 


Much  of  the  poor  printing  in  the  Colonial  Period  was  due 
the  fact  that  the  type  had  become  badly  worn  from  frequent 
use.  Often,  the  type  had  been  used  for  years  in  printing  colonial 
documents  and  pamphlets  before  it  was  employed  to  print  the 
news.  To  get  new  type  it  was  frequently  necessary  for  the 
printer  to  make  a  special  trip  to  England.  The  first  attempt  to 
cast  type  was  made  in  Boston  about  1768  by  a  Scotchman  by 
the  name  of  Michelson.  With  the  scant  materials  available,  he 
did  the  best  that  could  be  expected,  but  his  type  lacked  the 
wearing  qualities  of  the  imported  variety.  Christopher  Sower, 
Jr.,  of  whom  mention  has  already  been  made  in  connection  with 
the  manufacture  of  printing-presses,  began  to  cast  type  in  1772 
at  his  foundry  in  Germantown,  but  was  compelled  to  secure  his 
raw  material  in  Germany.  One  of  Sower's  workmen,  Jacob  Bey, 
started  the  second  type  foundry  in  Germantown,  and  made 
several  improvements  in  the  composition  of  the  metal  employed 
in  the  manufacture  of  type.  The  most  important  type  foun- 
dry was  that  established  by  Benjamin  Franklin  in  1775.  For 
years  Franklin  had  been  whittling  type  out  of  wood  and  had 
been  making  cuts  of  metal,  but  not  until  the  outbreak  of  the 
Revolution  did  he  make  a  business  of  casting  type.  In  charge 
of  his  foundry  he  put  his  son-in-law,  B.  F.  Bache,  who  later 
figured  in  Philadelphia  journalism. 


COLONIAL  PERIOD  65 

WINTER  WEATHER  AND   NEWS        * 

Winter  always  brought  its  difficulties  to  the  colonial  printer. 
His  shop  often  being  poorly  heated  in  severely  cold  weather  the 
paper  froze  while  it  was  being  prepared  for  the  press  and  caused 
endless  delays.  The  colonial  printer  was  forced  to  wet  his  paper, 
before  he  could  put  it  on  the  press.  Winter  also  interfered  seri- 
ously in  the  delivery  of  newspapers:  post-riders  who  acted  as 
mail-carriers  frequently  had  to  abandon  their  routes  because  the 
roads  were  closed  by  snowdrifts.  Such  irregularity  in  delivery 
frequently  caused  subscribers  to  discontinue  their  papers  until 
the  roads  were  open  for  travel  again  in  the  spring.  This  custom 
occasionally  caused  the  colonial  publisher  so  much  annoyance 
that  he  threatened  to  move  his  paper  to  another  town  unless 
readers  would  subscribe  for  the  paper  for  the  entire  year. 

Possibly  some  of  these  discontinuances  during  the  winter  sea- 
son were  the  fault  of  the  colonial  editor.  Rural  subscribers  cared 
more  for  local  news  than  they  did  for  reprints  from  English 
papers.  During  the  winter  months  when  ships  neither  arrived 
nor  departed  from  the  ports,  early  American  editors  had  a  hard 
time  to  fill  their  columns.  Few  of  them,  however,  were  as  frank 
as  William  Bradford,  of  The  New  York  Gazette,  who,  on  one 
occasion,  explained  the  presence  of  an  abstruse  discussion  in  his 
columns  as  follows:  " There  being  a  scarcity  of  Foreign  News, 
we  hope  the  following  Essay  may  not  be  unacceptable  to  our 
READERS."  Severely  cold  weather  was  often  accepted  by  the 
colonial  printer  as  the  excuse  for  omitting  an  issue  entirely. 
Benjamin  Franklin  was  always  equal  to  any  emergency.  He 
frankly  admitted  that  when  news  was  dull  during  the  winter 
season,  he  amused  the  customers  of  The  Pennsylvania  Gazette 
by  filling  the  vacant  columns  with  anecdotes,  fables,  and  fancies 
of  his  own.  To  these  " fillers"  he  gave  such  an  air  of  truth  that 
he  not  infrequently  deceived  his  own  readers.  Many  of  his  anec- 
dotes, written  only  to  amuse  and  entertain,  were  quoted  as 
Gospel  truth  by  European  writers  on  American  affairs. 


66         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

FARLEY,    PROGRESSIVE   PUBLISHER 

One  attempt  during  this  period  to  get  the  news  while  it  was 
still  news  should  not  be  overlooked.  Samuel  Farley,  the  son  of 
a  Quaker  printer  of  Bristol,  England,  brought  out  the  seventh 
paper  in  New  York  City  on  March  20, 1762.  He  called  his  paper 
The  American  Chronicle,  and  being  energetic  he  tried  to  make  it 
live  up  to  its  name.  In  his  efforts  to  gather  news  more  quickly 
he  tried  to  secure  from  The  Pennsylvania  Journal  and  from  The 
Pennsylvania  Gazette  advance  sheets  of  these  newspapers,  but  in 
each  instance  he  was  unsuccessful,  as  the  two  Philadelphia  pub- 
lishers positively  refused  to  let  him  have  copies  of  their  papers 
before  the  usual  time  for  city  delivery.  The  refusal  showed  the 
spirit  that  then  prevailed  among  American  newspapers.  Not 
until  the  early  part  of  the  nineteenth  century  did  newspapers 
cooperate  in  sharing  the  burden  of  news-gathering. 

Farley  did,  however,  introduce  into  The  American  Chronicle 
a  department  called  "The  Lion's  Mouth,"  which  attracted 
much  attention  for  its  day.  Some  idea  of  this  innovation  may 
be  obtained  from  the  announcement  of  the  feature  in  the  fourth 
issue,  April  12,  1762:  — 

In  order  to  convey  such  Papers  to  the  Publisher  of  The  Chronicle  as 
may  be  of  general  entertainment  and  Instruction,  in  the  most  secret 
Manner;  and  to  prevent  all  such  authors  as  chuse  to  remain  incog,  from 
being  known  even  to  the  Printer,  he  has  procured  a  young  Lion,  thro' 
whose  Mouth  (which  stands  immoveably  expanded)  the  said  Composi- 
tions may  be  conveyed  with  the  utmost  Secrecy;  and  such  of  them  as 
shall  be  deem'd  acceptable  to  the  Public,  and  are  free  from  all  Defama- 
tion and  personal  Reflection,  and  come  properly  recommended,  shall 
be  inserted  in  The  Chronicle.  The  Lion  will  be  seated  in  the  Day  Time 
near  the  Window  fronting  the  Dock,  and  to  prevent  his  annoying  any 
of  his  Majesty's  Liege  Subjects  (tho'  he  is  extremely  tame  and  good 
natured)  he  will  be  chained  securely  to  the  Post  of  the  Window.  .  .  In 
the  Night  Time,  to  prevent  his  taking  cold  by  the  noxious  Dew  of  this 
Northern  climate,  he  will  be  placed  on  a  Pedestal  in  the  Entry  just 
behind  or  so  near  the  Door,  that  any  Materials  may  be  conveyed 
into  his  Mouth  (which  is  always  open)  thro'  a  Hole  in  the  Upper  Door 
which  leads  direct  to  his  Jaw. 
N.B.  He  will  Roar  at  no  honest  man  whatsoever. 


COLONIAL  PERIOD  67 

NEWS   OF  MODERN   FLAVOR  A 

Some  of  the  news  items  published  as  early  as  1747  had  a  mod- 
ern flavor.  But  for  the  color  of  the  paper  and  the  spelling  of  the 
words  a  second  glance  for  the  date-line  is  almost  necessary. 
When  the  American  colonies  were  raising  men  to  defend  north- 
ern frontiers  against  invasions  by  the  French  and  Indians  and 
were  voting  appropriations  with  modern  prodigality,  there  were 
newspapers  which  brought  charges  of  graft  against  the  men  fur- 
nishing supplies  to  the  troops.  Parker's  New-York  Gazette  and 
Weekly  Post-Boy  boldly  printed  an  item  which  alleged  that 
many  of  the  guns  purchased  were  out-of-date  and  practically 
useless,  and  that  the  beef  for  soldiers  was  more  effective  than*^ 
powder  because  its  odor  would  drive  away  the  enemy.  An  edi-  f 
torial  contributor,  who  had  a  keen  sense  of  humor,  offered  the 
explanation  that  the  guns  were  supplied  by  Quakers,  who  had 
scruples  against  the  taking  of  human  life,  and  that  the  loss  on 
the  meat  could  more  easily  be  borne  by  the  colonies  than  by  the 
original  owners.  Veiled  attacks  were  made  that  favoritism  was 
shown  in  the  selection  of  men  to  lead  the  troops  and  that  incom- 
petency  was  common,  especially  among  the  British  officers  sent 
over  to  defend  the  colonies. 

NEWS  "BOILED  DOWN"       * 

The  colonial  editor  was  often  a  master  of  his  trade  in  "  boiling 
down"  the  news:  he  did  not  use  three  columns  when  three  lines 
would  tell  the  story.  The  Pennsylvania  Gazette  on  January  7, 
1752,  saw  no  " sensational  copy"  in  its  item,  "We  hear  that 
within  these  few  Days,  near  400  Five-penny  Loaves  have  been 
seized  among  the  Bakers  of  this  City,  by  the  Clerk  of  the  Mar- 
ket, for  wanting  greatly  in  their  due  Weight";  nor  did  it  place 
any  "scare"  headline  over  this  one  on  February  25  of  the 
same  year:  "Last  Week  William  Kerr  (lately  mentioned  in  this 
Paper)  was  indicted  and  convicted  at  the  Mayor's  Court,  of 
uttering  counterfeit  Mill'd  Pieces  of  Eight,  knowing  them  to  be 
such,  for  which  he  receiv'd  Sentence  as  follows:  To  stand  in  the 
Pillory  one  Hour  To-morrow,  to  have  his  Ear  naiPd  to  the  same, 
and  the  Part  nail'd  cut  off;  and  on  Saturday  next  to  stand  an- 


68         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Jother  Hour  in  the  Pillory,  and  to  be  whipt  Thirty-nine  Lashes, 
|at  the  Cart's  Tail,  round  two  Squares,  and  then  to  pay  a  Fine 
|of  Fifty  Pounds." 

COLONISTS   SLOW   PAY 

Franklin,  in  his  "Autobiography,"  has  left  a  permanent 
record  that  the  colonists  were  not  especially  interested  either 
in  newspapers  or  in  books.  To  quote  from  the  pen  of  this  dis- 
tinguished editor  of  the  Colonial  Period:  "At  the  time  I  estab- 
lished myself  in  Philadelphia  —  1723  —  there  was  not  a  good 
bookseller's  shop  in  any  of  the  colonies  to  the  southward  of 
Boston.  In  New  York  and  Philadelphia  the  printers  were  in- 
deed stationers,  but  they  sold  only  paper,  almanacs,  ballads, 
and  a  few  common  school-books.  Those  who  loved  reading  were 
obliged  to  send  for  their  books  to  England." 

JBven  those  most  interested  in  reading  preferred  to  buy  their 
•^books  and  newspapers  from  England.  This  fact  may  explain 
why  so  many  of  the  colonial  editors  reprinted  pieces  from  Eng- 
lish papers :  in  other  words,  they  attempted  to  give  readers  what 
the  latter  wanted.  Then,  too,  the  colonists  often  followed  the 
English  custom  of  reading  their  newspapers  at  the  public  tav- 
erns. Other  conditions  prevented  a  paper  from  having  a  large 
circulation  in  rural  sections.  Subscribers  living  at  a  distance 
from  the  place  of  publication  had  to  pay  not  only  the  subscrip- 
tion price  of  the  paper,  but  also  the  cost  for  distribution  by  the 
mail-carrier.  The  pine  knot,  the  tallow  candle,  or  the  bit  of 
bear  oil  burning  in  a  saucer  afforded  poor  light  for  the  perusal 
of  a  newspaper  by  a  farmer,  already  tired  by  the  day's  toil  of 
clearing  forest  land. 

The  fervent  appeals  of  colonial  editors  to  delinquent  sub- 
scribers show  how  hard  it  was  for  the  poor  printer  to  raise  the 
necessary  funds  in  cash  to  meet  the  cost  of  his  materials  sent 
from  abroad.  To  judge  by  the  notices,  the  colonial  editor  ex- 
perienced much  the  same  difficulty  in  getting  his  subscribers  to 
part  with  provisions  in  exchange  for  newspapers.  Yet  the  co- 
lonial printer  was  willing  to  take  almost  anything  in  exchange 
for  subscriptions.  Firewood,  homespun  cloth,  butter,  eggs, 
poultry  —  almost  anything  was  acceptable  to  "ye  printer." 


COLONIAL  PERIOD  69 

Some  of  the  dunning  appeals  to  subscribers  were  most  unique. 
One  printed  by  Thomas  Fleet  in  The  Boston  Evening  Post 
brought  results  even  if  some  delinquents  did  not  renew:  "The 
Subscribers  for  this  Paper,  (especially  those  at  a  Distance)  who 
are  shamefully  in  Arrear  for  it,  would  do  well  (methinks)  to 
remember  those  Apostolical  Injunctions,  Rom.  xiii.  7,  8.  Ren- 
der therefore  to  all  their  dues  ;  —  and  Owe  no  man  any  thing.  —  It 
is  wonderful  to  observe,  that  while  we  hear  so  much  about  a 
great  Revival  of  Religion  in  the  Land;  there  is  yet  so  little  Regard 
had  to  Justice  and  Common  Honesty  !  Surely  they  are  Abomi- 
nable Good  Works!" 

PRINTER   CAPITALIZES   MOTHER-IN-LAW 

Thomas  Fleet,  who  has  been  mentioned  in  the  preceding  para- 
graph, found  many  ways  to  supplement  the  income  from  The 
Boston  Evening  Post.  One  of  these  was  from  the  sale  of  "Mother 
Goose  Rhymes."  Fleet,  who  had  married  Elizabeth  Goose,  was 
very  much  amused  at  the  nursery  jingles  with  which  his  mother- 
in-law  amused  his  children"at  night.  After  he  had  put  them  into 
type  he  found  it  necessary  to  print  several  editions  to  meet  the 
demand.  So  far  as  can  be  learned  Fleet  was  the  first  man  to 
capitalize  his  mother-in-law. 

COST  OF   PRODUCTION 

Fleet  also  left  a  memorandum  which  illustrated  trade  condi- 
tions of  his  day.  In  it  he  said:  "In  the  days  of  Mr.  Campbell 
(the  founder  of  The  Boston  News-Letter),  who  published  a  news- 
paper here,  which  is  forty  years  ago,  Paper  was  bought  for  eight 
or  nine  shillings  a  Ream,  and  now  tis  Five  Pounds;  his  Paper 
was  never  more  than  half  a  sheet,  and  that  he  had  Two  Dollars 
a  year  for,  and  had  also  the  art  of  getting  his  Pay  for  it;  and 
that  size  has  continued  until  within  a  little  more  than  one  year, 
since  which  we  are  expected  to  publish  a  whole  sheet,  so  that 
the  Paper  now  stands  us  in  near  as  much  as  all  the  other  charges." 
For  the  sake  of  comparison  of  the  cost  of  production  of  The  Bos- 
ton Evening  Post  with  that  of  a  similar  paper  published  later  in 
the  century,  the  figures  may  be  given  for  1798.  In  that  year  the 
editor  of  The  Northern  Budget^  a  weekly  paper  published  at 


70         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Troy,  New  York,  asserted  that  he  could,  with  the  utmost  econ- 
omy, conduct  his  paper  at  thirty  dollars  a  week.  His  estimate 
was  somewhat  lower  than  that  of  other  editors  of  his  time  be- 
cause he  was  able  to  get  paper  cheaper  on  account  of  the  fact 
that  a  paper-mill  had  been  built  in  Troy  about  five  years  pre- 
vious. 

ADVERTISEMENTS   OF   PERIOD 

When  John  Campbell  brought  out  The  Boston  News-Letter 
on  April  24,  1704,  he  announced  that  "  Persons  who  have  any 
Houses,  Lands,  Tenements,  Farms,  Ships,  Vessels,  Goods, 
Wares  or  Merchandizes,  &c.  to  be  Sold,  or  Let;  or  Servants 
Runaway,  or  Goods  Stole  or  Lost;  may  have  the  same  inserted 
at  a  Reasonable  Rate,  from  Twelve  Pence  to  Five  Shillings,  and 
not  to  exceed:  Who  may  agree  with  John  Campbel  Post-master 
of  Boston."  This  list  is  fairly  typical  of  the  advertisements  in- 
serted in  colonial  newspapers.  In  many  instances  the  Boston 
post-office  was  made  the  clearing-house:  the  first  advertise- 
ment in  the  second  'number  of  The  News-Letter  offered  a  reward 
for  the  return  of  two  iron  anvils,  weighing  between  one  hundred 
and  twenty  and  one  hundred  and  forty  pounds  each,  which  had 
been  lost  "Off  Mr.  Shippen's  Wharff,"  provided  they  were  re- 
turned to  John  Campbell,  Postmaster.  Many  of  the  advertise- 
ments contained  the  stereotyped  expression,  "For  further  in- 
formation, inquire  of  John  Campbell,  Postmaster." 

The  third  number  of  The  News-Letter  contained  the  following 
advertisement :  — 

At  Oysterbay  on  Loruj-l sland  in  the  Province  of  N.  York,  There  is  a 
very  good  Fulling-Mill,  to  be  Let  or  Sold,  as  also  a  Plantation,  having 
on  it  a  large  new  Brick  house,  and  another  good  house  by  it  for  a  Kit- 
chin,  &  work  house,  with  a  Barn,  Stable,  &c.  a  young  Orchard  and  20 
Acres  clear  Land.  The  Mill  is  to  be  Let  with  or  without  the  Planta- 
tion: Enquire  of  Mr.  William  Bradford  Printer  in  N.  York  and  know 
further. 

This  insertion  in  the  third  number  showed  quick  action  on 
the  part  of  Bradford  when  it  is  considered  how  long  it  took  to 
get  a  letter  from  New  York  to  Boston  at  that  time:  it  also 
showed  that  Bradford  was  familiar  with,  and  was  doubtless 


COLONIAL  PERIOD  71 

watching  with  much  interest,  the  attempt  to  found  a  newspaper 
in  Boston. 

Advertisements  similar  to  the  following  were  found  in  colonial 
papers :  — 

/"Captain  Peter  Lawrence  is  going  a  Privateering  from  Rhode-Island  in 
a  good  Sloop,  about  60  Tuns,  six  Guns,  and  90  Men  for  Canada,  and 
any  Gentlemen  or  Sailors  that  are  disposed  to  go  shall  be  kindly  enter- 
tained- 

The  first  advertisements  of  any  size  were  those  announcing 
the  sale  of  books  and  pamphlets  —  especially  those  dealing  with 
religious  topics,  or  giving  the  sermons  of  noted  divines.  After 
the  colonial  publishers  had  reprinted  extracts  from  The  London 
Gazette,  The  London  Flying  Post,  The  London  Post-Boy,  etc., 
they  advertised  these  English  newspapers  for  sale  at  greatly 
reduced  prices. 

Franklin  especially  knew  the  value  of  The  Pennsylvania 
Gazette  as  an  advertising  medium,  and  used  it  frequently,  not 
only  for  himself,  but  also  the  members  of  his  family.  His  wife, 
for  example,  sold  in  the  print-shop  a  so-called  very  fine  grade  of 
toilet  soap,  said  to  have  been  imported  from  abroad,  but  doubt- 
less manufactured  by  Franklin's  father  in  Boston.  He  occa- 
sionally put  into  his  " house"  advertisements  some  of  the  humor 
found  in  "Poor  Richard's  Almanac."  The  following  advertise- 
ment of  this  character  was  taken  from  The  Pennsylvania  Ga- 
zette: — 

rpAKEN  out  of  Pew  in  the  Church  some  months  since,  a  Common 
Prayer  Book,  bound  in  red,  gilt,  and  lettered  D.F.  (Deborah  Frank- 
lin) on  each  cover.  The  Person  who  took  it  is  desired  to  open  it  and 
read  the  eighth  Commandment,  and  afterwards  return  it  into  the  same 
Pew  again,  upon  which  no  further  Notice  will  be  taken. 

Another  advertisement,  inserted  by  Franklin  in  1742,  must 
have  given  his  subscribers  the  impression  that  he  was  in  the  im- 
porting as  well  as  in  the  printing  business :  — 

TUst  import'd  from  Lond  and  to  be  sold  by  B.  Franklin,  at  the  Post- 
Office,  near  the  Market  in  Philadelphia. 

All  sorts  of  fine  Paper,  Parchment,  Ink-powder,  Sealing  Wax,  Wafers, 
fountain  Pens,  Ink  and  Sand  Glasses  with  Brass  Heads,  Pounce,  and 


72         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Pounce  Boxes,  Curious,  large  Ivory  Books  and  Common  ditto,  large 
and  small  slates,  Gunters  Scales,  Dividers,  Protactors,  Pocket  Com- 
passes, both  large  and  small,  fine  Pewter  Stands  proper  for  Offices  and 
Counting  Houses,  fine  Mezzotinto  and  grav'd  Pictures  of  Mr.  White- 
field. 

Where  may  be  had  great  Variety  of  Bibles,  Testaments,  Psalters, 
Spelling  Books,  Primers,  Hornbooks,  and  other  sorts  of  stationery  ware. 

Even  James  Franklin,  Benjamin's  brother,  was  a  good  adver- 
tiser of  the  products  of  his  press.  Before  he  started  The  New- 
England  Courant,  and  while  he  was  still  printing  The  Boston 
Gazette  for  Postmaster  Brooker,  he  inserted  this  advertisement 
in  the  latter  paper  on  April  25,  1720:  — 

rphe  Printer  hereof  prints  Linens,  Calicoes,  Silks,  &c.,  in  good  Figures, 
very  livily  and  durable  colours,  and  without  the  offensive  Smell 
which  commonly  attends  the  Linens  printed  here. 

PILLS   AND   POWDERS   SOLD   AT  PRINT-SHOPS 

Even  the  most  successful  of  the  colonial  printer-editors  had 
to  supplement  the  income  from  their  presses  by  work  in  other 
fields.  Attention  has  already  been  called  to  how  frequently 
they  were  postmasters,  or  employed  in  the  postal  department. 
Almost  invariably  they  were  booksellers  and  stationers,  espe- 
cially of  their  own  presses.  To  read  the  list  of  things  which 
might  be  obtained  at  the  print-shop  gives  one  the  impression 
that  the  colonial  editor  practically  ran  a  store.  Often  he  sold 
over  the  counter  the  goods  accepted  in  payment  for  subscrip- 
tions. He  seemed  to  make  a  specialty  of  selling  quack  medi- 
cines :  he  early  discovered  the  value  of  his  own  newspaper  as  an 
advertising  medium  for  such  nostrums.  The  colonial  editors 
of  New  York  practically  acted  as  wholesale  distributors  for  such 
nostrums  and  encouraged  their  brother  editors  in  other  colonies 
to  put  pills  and  powders  alongside  of  the  Bibles  and  printed 
sermons  on  the  shelves  of  the  print-shop.  Some  of  these  nos- 
trums "cured  diseases  not  to  be  mentioned  in  the  newspaper"; 
for  full  details  sufferers  might  call  at  the  office  of  the  colonial 
papers  and  editors  would  answer  any  questions  asked.  In  the 
North,  most  of  these  so-called  remedies  were  imported  from 
Europe  and  frequently  bore  the  endorsement  of  royal  persons; 


COLONIAL  PERIOD  73 

in  the  South,  most  of  the  proprietary  medicines  offered  for  sale 
by  local  printers  were  manufactured  from  herbs  after  prescrip- 
tions furnished  by  Indian  doctors.  Typical  of  the  latter  The 
South  Carolina  Gazette  advertised  in  January,  1744:  — 

Seneka-Rattle-Snakc-Root,  so  famous  for  its  effectually  curing 
of  Pleurisy;  and  an  excellent  Eye- Water,  to  be  sold  by  the  Printer 
hereof. 

TALES   TOLD    BY   ADVERTISEMENTS 

Save  for  their  headlines,  advertisements  were  frequently  set 
up  like  regular  reading  matter.  They  were  usually  small  in  size, 
and  not  infrequently  limited  in  size  by  the"printer.  Occasionally, 
one  finds  a  colonial  printer  using  the  margins  for  an  advertise- 
ment which  came  in  late.  Strange  as  it  may  seem,  however, 
these  advertisements  when  read  to-day  are  almost  as  interest- 
ing as  the  text.  They  tell  a  story  which  needs  but  little  by  way 
of  interpretation.  They  tell  us  of  the  fads  and  fancies  in  the 
matter  of  dress  of  the  colonial  period.  If  there  were  no  mention 
of  the  prevalence  of  smallpox  in  the  colonies,  one  would  know 
that  it  was  common  because  the  word  "  pock-fretten "  was  used 
in  describing  a  slave  who  had  run  away  and  for  whom  a  reward 
was  offered  in  the  local  press.  The  advertisements  of  servants 
and  apprentices,  who,  like  the  slaves,  had  run  away  from  their 
masters,  recall  a  time  when  people  were  sold  in  bondage  for  a 
limited  time  until  the  money  owed  for  their  passage  across  the 
ocean,  or  for  debts  incurred  after  their  arrival,  was  paid  in  full. 
The  amount  of  the  reward  offered  was  often  small  —  six  cents. 
Such  small  rewards,  however,  are  explained  by  the  fact  that 
masters  were  required  by  law  to  advertise  runaway  servants 
and  slaves. 

The  advertisements  of  the  colonial  department  stores  —  if 
that  term  may  be  used  correctly  —  need  to-day  a  glossary  in 
order  that  articles  described  may  be  intelligible,  even  to  women. 
How  many  readers  of  this  book,  for  example,  are  familiar  with 
the  items  listed  by  Isaac  Jones,  when  in  1752  he  advertised  in 
The  Pennsylvania  Gazette  to  be  sold  cheap  the  following  things? 

Boiled  and  common  camblets,  single  and  double  alopeens,  broad  and 
narrow  shaloons,  tammies,  durants,  plain  and  corded  poplins,  duroys, 


74         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM1 

calimancoes,  common  and  silk  sagathies,  florettas,  bearskins,  common 
and  hair  grazets,  tabbies,  ducapes,  stay  galloon  and  twist,  men's  and 
women's  thread,  dowlas,  ozenbrigs,  etc. 

'    LIVE    NEWS   IN   ADVERTISEMENTS 

Charles  Dudley  Warner,  who  was  connected  for  many  years 
with  The  Courant  of  Hartford,  Connecticut,  once  asserted  that 
the  colonial  newspaper  was  a  "  broadside  of  stale  news  with  a 
moral  essay  attached."  Whatever  may  be  true  of  the  news,  the 
advertisements  in  these  old  papers  were  rather  interesting  read- 
ing. There  was  nothing  stale  in  this  item  inserted  at  regular 
rates  in  the  columns  of  The  New-York  Gazette  for  1734:  — 

Whereas  James  Moor  of  Woodbridge  has  advertised  in  this  Gazette, 
as  well  as  by  Papers  sent  out  and  posted  up,  that  his  Wife,  Deliverance, 
has  eloped  from  his  Bed  and  Board.  These  are  to  certifie,  that  the  Same 
is  altogether  false,  for  She  has  lived  with  Him  above  Eight  Years  under 
His  tyranny  and  increditble  Abuses,  for  He  has  several  times  attempted 
to  murder  Her  and  also  turned  Her  out  of  Doors,  shamefully  abusing 
Her,  which  is  well  known  to  the  Neighbors  and  Neighbourhood  in 
Woodbridge. 

An  advertisement  in  The  New  York  Weekly  Post-Boy  in  1756 
showed  that  Barnum  was  not  the  first  to  discover  that  the  Ameri- 
can people  liked  to  be  fooled  once  in  a  while:  - 

To  be  seen  at  the  sign  of  the  Golden  Apple,  at  Peck's  Slip,  price  six- 
pence, children  four  coppers,  a  large  snake-skin,  21  feet  long  and  four 
feet  one  inch  wide.  It  was  killed  by  some  of  Gen.  Braddock's  men  by 
firing  six  balls  into  him,  close  by  the  Allegheny  Mountains,  supposed 
to  be  coming  down  to  feed  on  dead  men.  When  it  was  killed,  there  was 
found  in  its  belly  a  child,  supposed  to  be  four  years  old,  together  with 
a  live  dog!  It  had  a  horn  on  its  tail  seven  inches  long,  and  it  ran  as  fast 
as  a  horse.  All  gentlemen  and  ladies  desirous  to  see  it  may  apply  to  the 
subscriber  at  Peck's  Slip. 

ADVERTISING   AGENCY   IN   POST-OFFICES 

In  many  localities,  advertisements  for  colonial  papers  might 
be  left  at  the  local  post-office.  In  some  instances  the  local  post- 
office  would  accept  advertising  copy  for  publication  in  papers 
in  other  places:  it  did  so  with  the  permission  of  the  postal 
authorities.  Sometimes  the  post-office  made  public  in  print 


COLONIAL  PERIOD  73 

standing  announcements  similar  to  the  following  which  ap- 
peared during  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century  in  The 
Pennsylvania  Gazette  at  Philadelphia:  "Advertisements  for  the 
German  and  English  Gazettes  printed  at  Lancaster  by  Miller 
and  Holland  are  taken  at  the  post-office."  In  fact,  the  colonial 
post-office  always  stood  ready  to  help  the  newspaper  when  the 
postmaster  was  not  financially  interested  in  the  printing-plant. 
William  Bradford,  the  publisher  of  the  first  colonial  weekly  in 
New  York,  made  an  arrangement  with  Richard  Nichols,  post- 
master in  1727,  whereby  the  latter  accepted  advertisements  for 
The  New-York  Gazette  at  regular  rates  and  sold  single  copies  of 
the  paper  at  what  to-day  would  be  the  stamp  window. 

FREE   POSTAGE   AT   FIRST 

When  John  Campbell  first  sent  out  his  written  news-letters 
to  colonial  Governors,  they  were  mailed  without  cost.  Later, 
when  he  printed  his  letters  under  the  title,  The  Boston  News- 
Letter ',  he  undoubtedly  was  able  to  mail  many  of  them  free  and 
only  had  to  pay  a  nominal  charge  in  other  cases.  One  of  the 
reasons  why  the  colonial  printer-editor  desired  to  be  postmaster 
was  undoubtedly  the  opportunity  that  was  afforded  by  such 
an  office  to  make  advantageous  arrangements  with  local  post- 
riders  to  deliver  newspapers.  Certainly,  the  postmaster-editor 
possessed  better  facilities  for  the  distribution  of  his  paper  than 
rival  editors;  Benjamin  Franklin  and  William  Weyman  have 
already  borne  testimony  to  this  fact. 

Franklin  was  a  master  at  the  art  of  securing  free  distribution 
of  his  Pennsylvania  Gazette.  In  his  issue  for  January  28,  1735, 
he  published  the  following  item:  "By  the  indulgence  of  the 
Honorable  Colonel  Spotswood,  Post-Master-General,  the  printer 
hereof  is  allowed  to  send  the  Gazettes  by  the  post,  postage  free, 
to  all  parts  of  the  postroad,  from  Virginia  to  New  England." 

REGULATIONS   OF   FRANKLIN 

But  as  newspapers  increased,  a  change  from  the  plan  just  out- 
lined was  made.  In  1758  Franklin  and  Hunter  were  in  charge  of 
the  general  post-office  for  the  colonies,  and  on  March  10  of  that 
year  they  issued  the  following  statement :  — 


76         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Whereas  the  News-papers  of  the  several  Colonies  on  this  Continent, 
heretofore  permitted  to  be  sent  by  the  Post  free  of  Charge,  are  of  late 
years  so  much  increased  as  to  become  extremely  burthensome  to  the 
Riders,  who  demand  additional  Salaries  or  Allowances  from  the  Post 
Office  on  that  Account,  and  it  is  not  reasonable  that  the  Office  which 
receives  no  Benefit  from  the  Carriage  of  News-papers,  should  be  at  any 
Expence  for  such  Carriage;  and  Whereas  the  Printers  of  News-papers 
complain  that  they  frequently  receive  orders  for  News-papers  from 
distant  Post-Offices,  which  they  comply  with  by  sending  the  Papers 
tho  they  know  not  the  Persons  to  whom  the  Papers  are  to  be  directed, 
and  have  no  convenient  Means  of  collecting  the  Money,  so  that  much 
of  it  is  lost;  and  that  for  Want  of  due  Notice  when  distant  Subscribers 
die,  become  Bankrupt,  or  remove  out  of  the  County,  they  continue 
to  send  Papers  some  years  directed  to  such  Persons,  whereby  the  Posts 
are  loaded  with  Many  Papers  to  No  Purpose,  and  the  Loss  so  great  to 
the  Printers,  as  that  they  cannot  afford  to  make  any  Allowance  to  the 
Riders  for  carrying  the  Papers;  And  whereas  some  of  the  Riders  do, 
and  others  may  demand  exorbitant  Rates  of  Persons  living  on  the  Roads, 
for  carrying  and  delivering  the  Papers  that  do  not  go  into  Any  Office, 
but  are  delivered  by  the  Riders  themselves. 

To  remedy  these  Inconveniences,  and  yet  not  to  discourage  the 
Spreading  of  News-papers,  which  are  on  many  Occasions  useful  to 
Government,  and  advantageous  to  Commerce,  and  to  the  Publick;  You 
are,  after  the  first  Day  of  June  Next,  to  deliver  No  News-paper  at  your 
Office  (except  the  single  Papers  exchang'd  between  Printer  and  Printer) 
but  to  such  Persons  only  as  do  agree  to  pay  you,  for  the  Use  of  the 
Rider  which  brings  such  papers  a  small  addition  Consideration  per 
Annum,  for  each  Paper,  over  and  above  the  Price  of  the  Papers:  that 
is  to  say,  For  any  Distance  not  exceeding  50  miles,  each  Paper  is  carried, 
the  Sum  of  9d.  Ster.  per  Annum,  or  an  equivalent  in  Currency:  For 
any  Distance  exceeding  50  miles,  and  not  exceeding  One  Hundred  Miles 
the  Sum  of  One  Shilling  and  Six  Pence  Ster.  per  Annum;  and  in  the  same 
proportion  for  every  other  Fifty  Miles  which  such  Paper  shall  be  car- 
ried; which  Money  for  the  Rider  or  Riders,  together  with  the  Price 
of  the  Papers  for  the  Printers,  you  are  to  receive  and  pay  respectively 
once  a  Year  at  least,  deducting  for  your  Care  and  Trouble  therein  a 
Commission  of  Twenty  per  cent.  And  you  are  to  send  no  Order  to  any 
Printer  for  Papers,  except  the  Persons,  to  whom  the  Papers  are  to  be 
sent,  are  in  your  Opinion  responsible,  and  such  as  you  will  be  account- 
able for.  And  you  are  to  suffer  no  Rider  employed  or  paid  by  you  to 
receive  more  than  the  rates  above  for  carrying  any  Papers  by  them  de- 
livered on  their  respective  Roads :  Nor  to  carry  and  deliver  any  Papers 
but  such  as  they  will  be  accountable  for  to  the  Printers,  in  considera- 
tion of  an  Allowance  of  the  same  Commission  as  aforesaid  for  Collect- 
ing and  paying  the  Money. 

And  as  some  of  the  Papers  pass  thro'  the  Hands  of  several  Riders 


COLONIAL  PERIOD  77 

between  the  Places  where  they  are  printed  and  the  Place  of  Delivery; 
You  are  to  pay  the  Carriage-money  you  collect  for  the  Riders  to  the 
several  Riders  who  have  carried  such  Papers  in  Proportion,  as  near  as 
conveniently  may  be  made,  to  the  Distance,  they  have  been  carried 
by  each  Rider  respectively. 

(Signed)  FRANKLIN  AND  HUNTER. 

This  order  remained  in  force  until  the  relations  between  the 
colonies  and  England  and  the  postal  service  became  interrupted 
on  account  of  the  approaching  conflict  of  the  Revolution.  Then 
many  of  the  newspaper  publishers  arranged  for  a  private  dis- 
tribution of  their  papers  to  country  subscribers. 

The  reforms  of  Franklin  and  Hunter  in  the  reorganization  of 
the  colonial  post-office  and  in  the  increase  of  post-roads  had  two 
effects  on  the  journalism  of  the  period.  First,  there  was  an  in- 
crease in  letters  among  correspondents  in  the  several  colonies, 
and  as  these  letters  often  contained  news  items  of  considerable 
importance,  they  not  infrequently  found  their  way  into  the 
newspapers  under  some  such  caption  as  "From  a  Gentleman 
Residing  in  Virginia";  second,  the  newspapers  were  placed  on  a 
better  subscription  basis,  and  the  exchange  papers,  being  more 
regular  in  their  receipt,  not  only  improved  the  news  service,  but 
also  aroused  a  news  interest  in  what  was  going  on  in  all  the  colo- 
nies. Without  this  awakened  interest,  it  might  have  been  im- 
possible to  have  persuaded  the  colonies  to  unite  for  common 
defense  in  the  Revolutionary  Period. 

LOST  —  ELEVEN    DAYS 

Readers  who  turn  the  files  of  colonial  newspapers  for  1752  are 
often  surprised  at  the  irregularity  in  the  matter  of  dating  found 
in  the  papers  for  the  first  week  of  September  of  that  year.  The 
fifth  issue  of  The  Mercury,  published  by  Hugh  Gaine  at  New 
York,  was  dated  August  31,  1752:  seven  days  later,  the  sixth 
was  dated  September  18.  Yet  no  mistake  had  been  made; 
eleven  days  had  simply  been  wiped  out  of  existence  by  the 
change  to  the  Gregorian  style  in  figuring  time,  adopted  the  first 
week  of  September,  1752.  Several  writers  have  thought  that 
Benjamin  Franklin  skipped  a  week  in  publishing  his  Pennsyl- 
vania Gazette  at  Philadelphia  in  the  September  of  1752.  The 


78         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

irregularity  here,  as  elsewhere,  was  due  to  the  change  to  the 
Gregorian  system  of  time. 


i 


B.   FRANKLIN,    CARTOONIST 

Benjamin  Franklin,  who  introduced  many  innovations  into 
the  American  press,  was  the  first  to  print  the  cartoon  in  his 
Pennsylvania  Gazette.  The  occasion  was  a  memorable  one  in 
American  history.  The  government  of  the  New  York  colony, 
on  the  recommendation  of  the  Lords  of  Trade,  issued  on  Decem- 
ber 24,  1753,  a  call  for  a  meeting  in  Albany  of  the  British  colo- 
nies in  America  and  announced  the  date  for  that  meeting  for 
June  14,  1754.  Rumors  of  a  possible  war  with  the  French  was 
the  immediate  cause  of  the  action.  The  rumors  were  not  with- 
out some  foundation,  for  on  May  9,  1754,  Franklin,  who  was 
one  of  the  three  commissioners  to  attend  the  Albany  convention 
on  behalf  of  Pennsylvania,  published  in  The  Pennsylvania  Ga- 
zette an  "  ad  vice"  for  Major  Washington  that  the  fort  in  the 
Forks  of  the  Monongahela  had  been  surrendered  to  the  French. 
To  increase  the  force  of  his  appeal  for  "our  common  defense  and 
security,"  he  inserted  a  cartoon  which  represented  a  snake  cut 
into  eight  parts:  the  head  represented  New  England,  and  the 
seven  other  parts  stood  for  New  York,  New  Jersey,  Pennsyl- 
vania, Maryland,  Virginia,  North  Carolina,  and  South  Caro- 
lina. By  way  of  a  caption  Franklin  inserted  under  the  cartoon 
the  words  "  Join  or  Die." 

INFLUENCE   OF   FIRST  CARTOON 

The  power  of  the  cartoon  was  at  once  recognized  by  the  other 
editors  of  colonial  papers.  Before  the  end  of  the  month,  the 
snake  cartoon  had  been  copied  in  The  New-York  Gazette,  The 
New-York  Mercury,  The  Boston  Gazette,  and  The  Boston  News- 
Letter.  The  Boston  Gazette  improved  the  original  by  putting  the 
following  words  into  the  mouth  of  the  snake,  "  Unite  and  Con- 
quer." The  influence  of  the  cartoon  was  not  entirely  confined 
to  the  papers  already  mentioned.  The  South  Carolina  Gazette, 
for  example,  doing  the  best  it  could  with  the  mechanical  facili- 
ties at  its  disposal,  printed  a  "near-snake"  with  straight  lines 
to  represent  its  parts.  Even  The  Virginia  Gazette  spoke  of  a 


COLONIAL  PERIOD  79 

"late  ingenious  emblem "  which  was  arousing  the  colonies.  The 
snake  of  this  cartoon  was  not  allowed  to  die,  but  in  its  charmed 
life  it  appeared  twice  more  in  the  newspapers  at  critical  periods 
in  American  history.  After  a  sleep  of  eleven  years  the  snake 
appeared  when  the  British  Stamp  Act  was  scheduled  to  go  into 
effect,  and  after  another  rest  it  appeared  at  the  outbreak  of  the 
Revolution. 

TAXES  ON   NEWSPAPERS 

During  the  Colonial  Period  two  attempts  were  made  to  tax 
newspapers.  The  first  was  in  Massachusetts,  the  second  in  New 
York.  In  both  instances  the  tax  was  designed  simply  to  raise 
revenue  for  the  colony  and  not  to  restrict  in  any  way  the  pub- 
lishing of  a  newspaper.  In  each  colony  the  tax  was  paid  by 
the  ultimate  consumer  and  not  by  the  producer  of  the  news- 
paper. 

FIRST  IN   MASSACHUSETTS 

The  Provincial  Legislature  of  Massachusetts  published  on 
January  13,  1755,  an  act,  passed  on  January  8  of  that  year, 
which  imposed  a  tax  of  a  halfpenny  on  every  newspaper  printed 
on  and  after  April  30,  1755.  The  act  was  to  cover  a  period  of 
two  years,  from  April  30,  1755,  to  April  30,  1757.  There  were 
three  papers  published  in  Boston:  all  of  these  appeared  with 
"the  little  red  stamp,"  save  those  preserved  for  office  files.  The 
stamp,  usually  put  on  the  lower  part  of  the  right-hand  margin 
of  the  paper,  was  a  bird  with  outstretched  wings.  Of  it  The 
Boston  Evening  Post  spoke  as  follows  in  its  issue  for  May  5, 
1755:  — 

The  little  pretty  Picture  here, 
O'  the  Side  looks  well  enough; 

Though  nothing  to  the  purpose  't  is, 
It  will  serve  to  set  it  off. 

As  has  already  been  intimated,  the  subscribers  rather  than 
the  printers  paid  for  the  adornment  of  "the  little  red  bird" 
which  stood  for  the  tax.  The  Boston  News-Letter  in  its  issue  for 
April  24,  1755,  published  the  following  announcement:  — 


80         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

As  the  Stamp-Duty  takes  Place  on  Wednesday  next,  the  30th  Cur- 
rent, the  Publisher  of  this  Paper  desires  such  of  his  good  Customers  in 
Town  or  Country,  who  intend  to  take  in  on  the  Terms  lately  adver- 
tised, and  have  not  yet  given  notice  thereof,  to  do  it  on  or  before  the 
said  Day,  that  he  may  know  what  Number  to  print  off. 

The  Boston  Evening  Post,  shortly  before  the  bird  flew  away 
when  the  tax  ceased  to  be  levied,  May  1,  1757,  printed  this  note 
for  the  benefit  of  its  customers  who  were  to  benefit  by  the  re- 
duction in  price :  — 

As  the  Stamp-Act  will  expire  the  second  Day  of  May  next,  (after 
which  there  will  be  some  Abatement  of  the  present  Price,  notwith- 
standing the  very  high  Price  of  Paper,  &c.  since  the  War)  the  Publisher 
thinks  it  proper  to  inform  you  that  he  will  send  out  no  Papers  to  any 
one  who  does  not  clear  off  all  Accounts  to  that  Time. 

SECOND   IN   NEW  YORK 

The  colony  of  New  York  passed  on  December  1,  1756,  an 
which  went  into  effect  on  January  1,  1757,  and  which  placed  a 
halfpenny  weekly  tax  on  newspapers. '  The  act  originally  was 
for  one  year,  but  it  was  renewed  in  December,  1757,  and  again 
in  December,  1758,  for  one  year.  The  purpose  of  this  tax  was 
practically  the  same  as  that  of  the  one  just  mentioned  in  Massa- 
chusetts :  it  was  to  raise  funds  to  help  defray  the  cost  of  running 
the  local  government. 

The  subscribers  in  New  York,  as  in  Massachusetts,  had  to  pay 
this  tax.  The  situation  was  thus  explained  by  The  New-York 
Weekly  Mercury  for  December  20,  1756:  — 

Consider  that  the  Sum  to  be  raised  by  the  Stamp  Office  is  to  be  laid 
out  in  the  Defence  of  their  Country;  and  that  the  Advanced  Price  of 
the  Paper  is  not  extorted  from  them  by  the  Printer,  but  is  owing  to  the 
Act,  legally  passed  by  the  three  different  Branches  of  the  Legislature 
of  this  Province. 

When  the  New  York  provincial  tax  on  newspapers  ceased 
to  be  collected  at  the  end  of  the  year  1759  the  papers,  including 
The  Mercury,  went  back  to  subscription  rates  asked  before 
they  were  adorned  with  the  red  halfpenny  stamps. 


COLONIAL  PERIOD  81 

LITERARY   INFLUENCES 

Moses  Coit  Tyler,  in  his  "  History  of  American  Literature," 
has  thus  summed  up  the  literary  influence  of  the  newspapers 
of  the  first  era :  — 

Our  colonial  journalism  soon  became,  in  itself,  a  really  important 
literary  force.  It  could  not  remain  forever  a  mere  disseminator  of  pub- 
lic gossip  or  a  placard  for  the  display  advertisements.  The  instinct  of 
critical  and  brave  debate  was  strong  even  among  those  puny  editors, 
and  it  kept  struggling  for  expression.  Moreover,  each  editor  was  sur- 
rounded by  a  coterie  of  friends,  with  active  brains  and  a  propensity  to 
utterance;  and  these  constituted  a  sort  of  unpaid  staff  of  editorial  con- 
tributors, who,  in  various  forms  —  letters,  essays,  anecdotes,  epigrams, 
poems,  lampoons  —  helped  to  give  vivacity  and  even  literary  value 
to  the  paper. 


CHAPTER   VII 

REVOLUTIONARY  PERIOD 

1765—1783 

THE  Revolutionary  Period  really  began  on  March  22,  1765, 
when  on  that  date  the  British  Parliament  passed  its  obnoxious 
Stamp  Act  to  take  effect  on  November  1  of  that  year.  By  this 
act,  newspapers  published  in  the  colonies  were  scheduled  to  pay 
a  halfpenny  tax  for  one  half-sheet  or  less  and  a  one-penny  tax 
for  anything  over  one  half-sheet,  but  not  exceeding  one  whole 
sheet  "for  every  printed  copy  thereof."  Any  advertisement  in- 
serted in  their  columns  must,  according  to  the  terms  of  the  act, 
pay  a  duty  of  two  shillings.  The  newspaper  taxes  imposed  by 
the  Provincial  Legislatures  had  been  paid  without  a  great  deal 
of  protest,  but  colonial  printers  fought  this  act,  not  only  because 
they  were  opposed  to  taxation  without  representation,  but  also 
because  they  feared  that  subscribers  and  advertisers  would  not 
be  willing  to  pay  the  increased  cost  of  production.  In  self-de- 
fense the  newspapers,  even  those  still  loyal  to  the  Crown,  united 
in  a  spirit  of  cooperation  against  the  act:  legislators  were  ad- 
vised to  "take  good  care  of  the  freedom  of  the  press,"  and  the 
columns  of  the  newspapers  reproduced  lively  discussions  on 
"the  rights  of  the  people"  in  the  matter  of  taxation.  Distin- 
guished patriots,  acting  as  occasional  contributors  to  the  press, 
changed  editorial  policies  from  static  to  dynamic  influences. 

NEWSPAPER  VS.    STAMP  ACT  OF    1765 

While  a  few  of  the  newspapers  in  America  did  actually  sus- 
pend publication  on  account  of  the  Stamp  Act,  most  of  them 
simply  threatened  to  do  so  and  then  went  ahead  and  brought 
out  their  issues  with  or  without  their  regular  official  titles.  For 
two  or  three  weeks  after  the  act  went  into  effect  several  news- 
papers appeared  with  such  heads  as  "No  Stamped  Paper  To  Be 
Had,"  "Recent  Occurrences,"  etc.  In  Philadelphia  The  Penn- 


Thurfday.  OOttir  )i,  1765.  THE  NUMB.   n;;. 

[PENNSYLVANIA   JOURNAL; 

AND 

WEEKLY    ADVERTISER. 

EXPIRING:      In   Hopes  of  a    Rcfurrcftion  to  LIFE   again. 


[AM  forry  to  be  obliged 
to  acquaint  my  Resd 
en.  that  a>  TheStAMp 
ACT,  ijfear'd  to  bcob 


I.gatory   upo 


of tc 


fuing. 

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Srar  the  Burthen,   his  thought  it  expetlien 
•>  STOP  a  while,  inorder  todeliberate,  whe 
I  th  r  any  Methods  can  be  found  to  elude  the 
Lh.in,  forced  tor  ut.  and  efcapc  jhe  mfup 
|  pomt'lc  Slavery  ,  which  it  it  lioperf,  frorr 
thejulV  Repreienutions  now  frude  igainf 
(hat  Aft,    may   be  effected.     Mean  while 
I  mult  earnnlly   Requell  every  Individua 
[of  mf  Sublcribrri,    manjr  of  whom  hav« 
Seen  long  behind  Hand,    that  they   would 
j'mrr.cdu'cly  Difchtrge  their  rtfpe&ive  Ar 
•ean,    th.u    I    mav    be  able,    not  only 
J  lupport  myfelf  during    the    IntervaJ,  boi 
I  be  better  prepared  to  proceed  igtin  wtfc 
Ith'uPaper,    whenever  an  opening  for  thai 
(Pnrpol'e    ippeari,    which   I    hope  wiH    tx 
1  WILLIAM  BRADFORD. 


4  ii 


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rll  Hlcfunft 
e.iio, 


they  ire   umlej,    that  their  mulu.l   aim 
,.  raicht  be  (incere  a 
,'kpLtedby  ,1       ' 
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I  *h>ch  i»  tiruc 


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:oftej,  ar.lthe  AIICI.I,   "  o<  t',,e  Peo;   e  i.aion.lil)  a.ak 

.Bed      Wnen    tl lup^cliej.  II  c     . 

»nd  Iheu-  Ku,n  M  admit  J  la  I..JJ--.  .  l.an!,. 

!  Tlbtimt'.'iunjil^  the  litter  unavoidable,  sj 
ni  la  uWi  toli.lruPo.er.  tl  at  il.e  lai._l.i(i  a... 
•  to  .{  art  rrtolii/ely  opj>c.ie( 


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I  kind  l-byf.ci.n  ,..i  .verf  toe^.^eluc  t  >,.!-.  or  ft 


I  in  all  political  Dilorjen  the  mare  contented  «e  a 
ertben.  fo  m.ich  the  »o,le  aie  tie.,  and  lo  n,u 
worfe  are  ne  fur  them.  It  n  a  *nv  !,  .ppy  t  t'.un 


.  a.e.y  li%pr.y  UN 


t.nci  »K«Oin, 


....  Caluin,,)       But   .lil.oujh   fuMn    Vinue   (annol 
iftecie.1  by  Ihe  Indulgence  of  the  malt    uT'imireO  Fi 


e.  Re»f"tf.     Furlhiti*  i 


ammonly  nipt  in  il 
,,heV,e.,of.l.f,|t. 

.••(  Men   to  Oiut   up  Ihe    moft   IvKce'.ful    ax)   u 
Chain.elof  Inl    ,n,.i.    n  f..,r,i:e  I'r.'l  Ir.  .r.enl 

dci    t«  be  Opoofcd        Befide.   tlie    Deprivttion    of  Ov 
-hole  liberty  may  be  ,u«.ned  o e  lame  Pnncip 

•mfSuathAnMB  h'eJl"1,.1      '"'  """   " 

II  ul  SerMtuJel     Til  ttierefore  fir 

,t  The   old    rVriv-f. (/«».<    Sni 

"n'd  JirJa'rfTntabV'ileft'iithoo. 
Day,  an  Hour  of  .iriuoui  Libert,  , 
li  otMili  a  .hole  ttermty  in  Bonda(e. 
,ir  «e  all  at    loyal  Su^ejt,.    tod   Ire?  born   Briton 
-    ;ht.  and  Libert.e.  c 
I  a.ld  Honour  lo  ou 

,  ._-uie  Ponent)  may  reap  tlie  Bene 

ind  blefl   tk<  H.vnd.  .r...l.   .ere  ll.c   Inllmmeutl  of  p 
:unnc  it  -T? 

That  Cfcey  then,  thel.riihte(t  Crown  ofPnife, 


*.nd  ever>  Patro 


The  I 


]UtZE3£SXZS. 


u,  il.elaidcounryofV 

'TheVin^ha.'heenpieal.dto  ippoint  Ihe    rithl  h«n 
Mliam  E!.!  of  D^rtmoutli,  So.rn^  Jemr...  EdVard  t. 

lowncr"'  o:  nade.  and  for  lnlpetlui|; 

XtutjgM 

,   been  ,le.,V 

ufam  iiu. 


j  etko'hn 


t  ftmt,  lh'>t»ide,.'-''r  ^..c,.'uy  tie  Pu'nc'h  m.n".' 
>,  lor  imrr.e.t,atc!y  leti.flg  \bout  the  demolition  ol 
e  Jetteei,  »bKU  are  the  luppuft  uf  the  kvbow  cl 

'i.  The  tilbt.Hil  of  Ctnt  Poland. 
-J  .':  K:,.a.:,..  h;l  P»..uJ  perniJnon  lo  •!„  Luthe- 
...a.U,l.'.u,7  lo  o,*«  ll,e.e  church.  »»,A  U.  b«n 
.1  re>r  t.ei.ty  yn.-.  to  p.o.,le  i  mjnifter,  and  !„ 
t,.and,.i,,ele/.ue,n 

.  •  The  Oetachl«e».t  of  one  hundre.1 
e.iU,,rie<!  fw  Lou.tina.  .re  TO  ike  iturch  for  »,.,„!, 
i.e  t  r/areroemuak  un  b*itil  tlie  Unicon,  t.i(«, 
t'l  a  (o.ernoe,  two  canttch,n  trout,  l  toxmifl^»i..(, 


•       •ufhtby  ihelarlpUtfrwnl 
| 


A^mf  ,,       On  Thu.M.y  at  the  In,,  ,  .  I 

ContuH,     in, I,,,,,.     ,„,„,..„,.,     !  J 

comrnittee^Nlnb  A-.  j 


••  'n 'rn'y'la"  l".',^",'",",""^  ."(""«  d'.d'i'f.lt  rc. 
Ju>e  MaJure.  The  aim.  ha.  f,,nc  c  nsi>tr,d  Ihe  Ane 
»r  country  tor  the  Nauob,  of  |««.«*«I.  rt««Kue  .  yt»r 


Munro  f  ..ned  -t  Scr| 
i|i  Dowla,  one  ol  l>e  molt  fonr.i.lable  p^wer.  o 
i  TTit  luuiequence  oftl,..  batt  e  e.vei  the  co, 
he  cornmiml  ot  trade  10  the  greater)  part  of  thi 

nl.i  ,  omi   ,,,v   at  p.' .em   ma,    be    blOur'i!  in'  eon 

»n    with    Alrxan.irr  the  Great,  .bole  on.nuod 

leiiver  InJu.tu    Iht  n.er    Uan(e.,  .„  „„   fj 

elpeOed  u  tbxit  i." 

It  is  raid  the  ne«  m y,  takire  into   eonndi 

r  r,,lt.,t  deplorable  ntu.tK,,,  of  Ihe  Cln^an, 
UrmtneJ  to  take  up  all  tbe  Canada  btHiai  oa: 
rereftte  the  pie'.m  time,  .nd  aCtr-ard.  «od,' 

,  the  ..oil  lo,,«e«  te,m,.   ,.,»,.fM,.  ,,d /.•«.,,. 

'.'"-'•-"-^f^"  "'  *"  ""  C1""C1«^«  •*-  < 
.    lord.' 

oird  on  Monday 


menta,  obtained  njr  fotrner{rant,  guder  ll,e  c,e.n 
ordered  to  be  nude  out.  ai  allo   .„    efl.m.te    t/tri  I 
nnual  produce  of  their  land  o«,  In  order  to  n.trod,,,, 

V^^hVr.d"""'-"'^"  "'""••  "'""• 
he,  «ite  from  ClhralteT.  trat  En.lifl,  »«SC,^  In 
men  ire  «„{>,,!,,  both  there  andai  ^,nurca  br  (om¥ 
nt.,  to  le.ve  O.I  bo*rd  hi.  S.rd.man  aa^e*,'! 'tup, 


X.fV  •»•    The  right  Uononnbl.  the  Earl  O, 

rSI  ^^Kh^fwst  I 

.ilterland.  .l,e?e  he  mitnd,  pub:,u!i n,  hl^^d  M"  I 
iuich,il  t  rvein..  with  CK|'!an«i(.,  y  r(H*.     ., 
kt.lfel,,fo.n.ed.  ll.at  I,.  U  .,,    ,,,;°'M    u  t'll^'l 
a,  0,e  &m,   H«e.  .  liiftory  «f  En,,.W  ,,^ T, 


enrjfo. 
Af  .   ,  ,  \v,  0,, 


X'lf.oanl  Speocer  h  D.OI  ll>  to  be 


ft  ,.rfro.le,r,  rim  .  perf, 
ely  oReretl  t  f.e»t  enipl 
M.  reful.J  It,  fi,lnt; 

sftssJrs 


l$&& 

:  <5^»Ni^ 


MORTUARY    ISSUE    OF    BRADFORD'S    /'A'.V.V.s'lV.r.l.V/A    JOURXAL 
OX   OCCASION   OF   THE   STAMP   ACT 

(Reduced) 


REVOLUTIONARY  PERIOD  83 

sylvania  Journal  and  The  Pennsylvania  Gazette  were  typical  ex- 
amples of  papers  which  adopted  such  a  scheme.  The  former, 
in  its  issue  for  October  31,  1765,  was  the  edition  par  excellence 
of  the  Stamp  Act  days.  Reproduced  on  another  page,  it  did 
much  to  arouse  the  colonists  to  drastic  action,  but  it  was  the 
appearance  of  the  paper  typographically  rather  than  what  it 
said  editorially  that  made  this  issue  so  influential.  The  Mary- 
land Gazette,  another  paper  which  issued  a  "Doom's-Day  Num- 
ber," appeared  in  deep  mourning,  with  the  skull  and  crossbones, 
representing  the  stamp,  on  the  lower  right-hand  corner  of  the 
front  page,  and  printed  in  deep  black  type  the  words,  "The 
Times  are  Dreadful,  Dismal,  Doleful,  Dolorous,  and  Dollar- 
less."  Though  this  newspaper  had  announced  in  its  issue  of 
October  10,  1765,  that  it  would  suspend  publication,  it  was  kept 
before  the  people  of  Maryland  by  "apparitions"  which  closely 
resembled  the  real  thing.  For  example,  on  January  30,  1766, 
there  appeared  The  Maryland  Gazette  Reviving:  on  February 
20,  1766,  The  Maryland  Gazette  Revived,  and  by  March  6,  1766, 
The  Maryland  Gazette.  These  "apparitions"  proved  that  The 
Gazette  was  "not  dead  but  only  sleepeth."  After  the  date  last 
mentioned,  the  paper  resumed  regular  publication.  Even  The 
South  Carolina  Gazette  had  in  place  of  its  title  the  usual  imprint, 
"No  Stamped  Paper  To  Be  Had." 

Other  newspapers  took  just  as  decided  a  stand  against  the 
act.  Hugh  Gaine  printed  in  his  New-York  Weekly  Mercury  on 
October  28,  1765,  a  notice  that  his  paper  "must  now  cease  for  a 
Time  and  the  Period  of  its  Resurrection  is  uncertain,"  but  that 
"when  it  is  revived  the  Printer  hopes  for  a  Continuation  of  the 
Favour  of  his  Friends."  He  made  —  as  did  many  other  printers 
who  issued  a  similar  announcement  —  an  appeal  to  patrons  to 
pay  what  was  due  on  subscriptions.  A  little  later  a  New  York 
mob  compelled  the  surrender  of  all  stamped  paper  in  that  city, 
and  thus  Gaine,  when  he  printed  a  news-sheet  on  November  4, 
with  "No  Stamped  Paper  To  Be  Had"  as  its  title,  literally  told 
the  truth.  All  papers  which  adopted  some  subterfuge  in  the 
matter  of  headings  resumed  their  old  titles  after  the  first  few 
weeks  of  the  Stamp  Act. 

A  most  diligent  and  careful  search  has  not  revealed  among  the 


84         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

thirteen  original  colonies  a  single  newspaper  which  appeared  on 
stamped  paper.  The  stamp,  however,  was  used  by  two  or  three 
papers  elsewhere.  A  copy  of  The  Halifax  Gazette  for  February 
13,  1766,  for  example,  has  on  the  upper  left-hand  corner  of  the 
fourth  page  the  red  halfpenny  stamp  with  the  word  "America" 
also  in  red  above  it.  The  Boston  News-Letter,  in  its  issue  for 
December  26,  1765,  printed  an  item  from  Philadelphia  in  which 
a  mention  was  made  of  the  arrival  in  that  city  from  Barbados 
of  a  "Stamped  News-Paper  of  2d.  of  November,"  and  an  an- 
nouncement was  given  that  the  newspaper  was  "exposed  to 
Public  View  at  the  Coffee-House."  The  paper  was  later  sus- 
pended from  an  iron  chain  and  burned. 

REPEAL   OF   STAMP   ACT 

When  the  news  reached  Boston  on  Friday,  May  16,  1766, 
that  the  British  Parliament  had  repealed  the  Stamp  Act  on 
March  18,  the  papers  of  that  city  united  and  published  an 
"extra"  of  the  fact  with  the  head,  "Glorious  News."  To  quote 
its  conclusion:  "Printed  for  the  Benefit  of  the  PUBLIC  by 
Drapers,  Edes  &  Gill,  Green  &  Russell,  and  Fleets.  The  Cus- 
tomers to  the  Boston  Papers  may  have  the  above  gratis  at  the 
respective  Offices."  In  the  same  spirit  at  least,  the  newspapers 
in  other  colonies  published  the  "Glorious  News." 

SNAKE   CARTOON   AGAIN 

At  the  time  the  British  Stamp  Act  was  attracting  so  much 
attention  in  the  press,  there  appeared  on  September  21,  1765, 
The  Constitutional  Courant.  The  name  of  its  editor  was  not 
given  and  the  place  of  its  publication  was  not  mentioned.  While 
there  was  only  one  issue,  there  were  at  least  three  different  edi- 
tions, which  seems  to  indicate  that  there  was  simultaneous  —  or 
nearly  so  —  publication  in  different  cities.  The  paper  was  de- 
voted principally  to  an  attack  on  the  Stamp  Act,  and  two  of  the 
editions  reprinted  the  snake  cartoon  which  Franklin  had  inserted 
in  The  Pennsylvania  Gazette  in  1754.  The  sale  of  The  Consti- 
tutional Courant  was  unusually  large.  It  was  hawked  on  the 
streets  of  New  York  by  newsboys  and  was  distributed  along  all 
the  postroads  by  colonial  riders.  The  Boston  Evening  Post,  in 


REVOLUTIONARY  PERIOD       •  85 

publishing  an  account  about  The  Courant,  had  the  snake  car- 
toon, already  mentioned,  reproduced  in  its  columns  on  Octo- 
ber 7,  1765. 

The  snake  cartoon  was  reproduced  a  second  time  during  this 
period.  In  1774  John  Holt,  fighting  editor,  dragged  it  out  of  its 
newspaper  hole  and  put  it  into  the  title  of  his  paper,  The  New- 
York  Journal  or  General  Advertiser.  The  snake  now  had  nine 
parts  —  Georgia  had  entered  the  combination.  A  slight  change 
was  made  in  the  caption  so  that  it  read,  "  Unite  or  Die."  Toward 
the  close  of  the  year,  Holt's  snake  shed  its  skin  and  appeared 
coiled  and  united.  On  it  were  printed  the  following  words:  - 

UNITED  NOW  FREE  AND  ALIVE  FIRM  ON  THIS  BASIS 
LIBERTY  SHALL  STAND  AND  THUS  SUPPORTED  EVER 
BLESS  OUR  LAND  TILL  TIME  BECOMES  ETERNITY. 

Holt  kept  the  united  snake  in  the  title  of  his  paper  until  he 
was  compelled  to  flee  from  New  York  on  August  29,  1776,  on 
account  of  the  occupation  of  the  city  by  the  British. 

The  cartoon  snake  in  its  largest  form  stretched  itself  out  on 
July  7,  1774,  in  The  Massachusetts  Spy,  a  paper  published  in 
Boston  by  Isaiah  Thomas.  It  appeared  directly  under  the  title 
and  occupied  practically  the  entire  width  of  the  newspaper. 
However,  a  little  space  at  the  extreme  right  was  saved  in  which 
appeared  a  dragon,  representing  Great  Britain.  Thomas  as- 
serted in  his  " History  of  Printing"  that  the  snake  cartoon  ap- 
peared in  each  succeeding  issue  so  long  as  The  Spy  was  printed 
in  Boston.  The  snake  finally  reached  Philadelphia  again,  but 
for  some  unaccountable  reason,  instead  of  creeping  back  into  its 
old  hole,  The  Pennsylvania  Gazette,  it  sunned  itself  in  the  title 
of  The  Pennsylvania  Journal,  a  rival  paper  published  by  William 
Bradford.  Its  first  appearance  in  The  Journal  was  on  July  27, 
1774;  its  last  was  on  October  18,  1775. 

PET   OF   PATRIOTS 

The  Boston  Gazette,  the  third  paper  of  that  name  in  Boston, 
and  established  April  7,  1755,  by  Edes  and  Gill,  was  the  especial 
"pet  of  the  patriots."  In  its  pages  were  fought  the  New  Eng- 
land editorial  battles  for  American  freedom:  its  contributors 


86         I^STORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

numbered  such  patriots  as  Samuel  Adams,  Joseph  Warren, 
John  Adams,  Thomas  Gushing,  Samuel  Cooper,  etc.  The  paper 
was  a  good  reporter  of  such  important  events  as  the  Stamp  Act, 
the  Boston  Massacre,  the  Boston  Tea  Party,  etc. 

The  account  of  the  Tea  Party,  from  The  Boston  Gazette,  is 
reproduced  to  show  the  improvement  in  the  handling  of  news 
since  the  days  of  the  Colonial  Period:  — 

On  Tuesday  last  the  body  of  the  people  of  this  and  all  the  adjacent 
towns,  and  others  from  the  distance  of  twenty  miles,  assembled  at  the 
Old  South  Meeting-house,  to  inquire  the  reason  of  the  delay  in  send- 
ing the  ship  Dartmouth,  with  the  East-India  Tea,  back  to  London; 
and  having  found  that  the  owner  had  not  taken  the  necessary  steps  for 
that  purpose,  they  enjoined  him  at  his  peril  to  demand  of  the  collec- 
tor of  the  customs  a  clearance  of  the  ship,  and  appointed  a  committee 
of  ten  to  see  it  performed:  after  which  they  adjourned  to  the  Thursday 
following,  ten  o'clock.  They  then  met,  and  being  informed  by  Mr. 
Rotch,  that  a  clearance  was  refused  him,  they  enjoined  him  imme- 
diately to  enter  a  protest  and  apply  to  the  Governor  for  a  passport  by 
the  castle,  and  adjourned  again  till  three  o'clock  for  the  same  day.  At 
which  time  they  again  met,  and  after  waiting  till  near  sunset,  Mr.  Rotch 
came  in  and  informed  them  that  he  had  accordingly  entered  his  pro- 
test and  waited  on  the  Governor  for  a  pass,  but  his  excellency  told  him 
he  could  not  consistent  with  his  duty  grant  it  until  his  vessel  was  quali- 
fied. The  people  finding  all  their  efforts  to  preserve  the  property  of  the 
East-India  Company  and  return  it  safely  to  London  frustrated  by 
the  tea  consignees,  the  collector  of  the  customs,  and  the  Governor  of 
the  Province,  DISSOLVED  their  meeting.  —  But,  BEHOLD  what  fol- 
lowed! A  number  of  brave  and  resolute  men,  determined  to  do  all  in 
their  power  to  save  their  country  from  the  ruin  which  their  enemies  had 
plotted,  in  less  than  four  hours,  emptied  every  chest  of  tea  overboard, 
the  three  ships  commanded  by  Captains  Hull,  Bruce,  and  Coffin, 
amounting  to  342  chests,  into  the  Sea!!  without  the  least  damage  done 
to  the  ships  or  any  other  property.  The  masters  and  owners  are  well 
pleased  that  their  ships  are  thus  cleared;  and  the  people  are  almost 
universally  congratulating  each  other  on  this  happy  event. 

REVERE,  ENGRAVER  OF  CUTS 

When  the  four  victims  of  the  Boston  Massacre  of  1770  were 
buried,  The  Boston  Gazette,  in  its  issue  for  March  12,  1770,  illus- 
trated its  account  of  the  event  with  cuts  of  four  coffins.  Evi- 
dently there  must  have  been  some  one  else  who  was  expected 
to  die,  for  Paul  Revere,  the  leading  Boston  engraver,  but  better 


Cornwall;*   TAKEN! 

BOSTON,  (Friday;  Oftober  26,    1781. 

This  Morning  an  Exprcfs  arrived  from  Providence 
to  HIS  EXCELLENCY  the  GOVERNOR, 
with  tlic  following  IMPORTANT  INTELLI- 
GENCE, viz.— 


PROVIDENCE,  0<£h  25,  1781.   Three  o;CIock,  P.  M; 

This  Moment  ah  Exprefs  arrived  at  his  Honor  the  Deputy^ 
Governor's;  from  Col.  Chriftopher  Qlney,  Commandant  on 
J*hode-Ifl?..nd,  announcing  the  important  Intelligence  of  the 
Surrender  of  Lord  CORNWALUS  and  his  Army  ;  an  Ac- 
count of  which  was  Piinted  this  Morning  at  Newport,  and 
is  as  follows,  viz.— 

NEWPORT,  October  25,  1781. 

X^ESTERD AY  Afternoon  arrived  in  this  Harbour  Cap't. 
J  Lovett,  of  the  Schooner  Adventure,  from  York  River,  in 
Chefapeak  Bay,  (which  he  left  the  2Oth  infbnt,)  and  brought 
us  the  glorious  News  of  the  Surrender  of  Lord  Cornwailis  and 
his  Army  P.ifoners  of  War  to  the  allied  Army,  under  the 
Command  of  our  illuftrious  General  ;  and  the  French  Fleet, 
under  the  Command  of  His  Excellency  the.  Courit  de  GraiTc. 

A  Ccfotidn  of  Arms  took  Place  on  Thurfday  the  i8ih  Inftant 
in  Confcquence  of  Pr.opofals  from  Lord  CORNWALLIS  for  & 
Capitulation. — His  Lordfhip  propofed  a  Ceftition  of  Twcrity- 
four  Hours,  but  Two  only  wers  granted  by  His  Excellency 
General  V/ASHINGTCN.  The  Articles  were  complcatcd 
the  fame  Day,  and  the  next  Day  the  allied  Army  took.  Pcflcf- 
fion  of  York  Town. 

By  this  glorious  Cpnqueft,  NINE*  THOUSAND  of  the 
Eneniy,  including  Seamen,  fell  into  our  Hands,  wi:h  an  im- 
mcnfe  Quantity  of  Warlike  Stores,  a  Fotfy-Gtui.$&tp,  a  Frigate^ 
an  armed  VreiTel,  and  about  One  Huudted  Sail  of 


Printed  by  B,  Edes  and  Soas.  ia  Scacc  Strecc. 

A   BROADSIDE   OF   EDES 

A  Revolutionary  "Extra"  of  The  Boston  Gazette 
(Reduced) 


REVOLUTIONARY  PERIOD  87 

known  for  his  midnight  ride,  rendered  a  bill  to  The  Boston 
Gazette  for  engraving  "5  coffings  for  a  massacre."  The  coffins, 
with  their  skulls  and  crossbones,  did  much  to  arouse  the  Sons  of 
Liberty  to  action. 

GAINE   AND   HIS   PAPERS  v 

In  all  probability  Hugh  Gaine  was  the  first  newspaper  pub- 
lisher to  employ  newsboys  to  deliver  papers.  The  Mercury  for 
September  14,  1761,  contained  an  advertisement  for  a  nice  boy 
to  deliver  papers  to  city  patrons;  "he  will  not  be  employed  for 
more  than  two  Hours  every  Monday  Morning."  The  Mercury 
again  asked  on  August  24,  1772,  for  "a  clever  honest  Fellow  to 
carry  The  New  York  Gazette  and  Weekly  Mercury  to  Part  of  the 
Customers  in  the  City,  four  Hours  every  Monday  will  do 
business." 

After  New  York  had  been  abandoned  by  the  Continental 
army,  there  were  two  editions  for  a  short  time  of  Hugh  Game's 
New-York  Gazette.  One  edition  was  brought  out  in  New  York 
City,  another  was  brought  out  in  Newark,  in  East  New  Jersey. 
The  New  York  edition  favored  the  Tory  cause,  and  the  Newark 
edition,  that  of  the  Whigs.  In  the  past  the  assertion  has  been 
made  that  Gaine  brought  out  both  of  these  editions  and  was 
simply  watching  to  see  which  side  would  probably  be  success- 
ful before  he  cast  his  lot.  Such,  however,  was  not  the  case. 
After  the  battle  of  Brooklyn,  Gaine  removed  part  of  his  presses 
and  type  to  Newark.  Here,  on  September  21,  1776,  he  brought 
out  Number  1301  of  his  Gazette.  This  and  the  following  issues 
spoke  of  "the  Honourable  Continental  Congress,"  and  the  issue 
of  Number  1306  showed  that  he  enjoyed  the  confidence  of  Gov- 
ernor Livingston  of  New  Jersey.  What  happened  in  New  York 
was  this:  General  Howe,  upon  his  arrival  found  that  there  was 
no  newspaper  in  the  city  and  appointed  Ambrose  Serle,  a  Royal- 
ist, to  bring  out  a  paper.  Serle  promptly  appropriated  the  type 
and  presses  which  had  been  left  at  "The  Bible  and  Crown"  and 
brought  out  on  September  30,  Number  1301  of  The  New  York 
Gazette  with  Gaine's  imprint  upon  it.  With  the  next  issue,  how- 
ever, Number  1302,  Searle  changed  the  imprint.  Gaine,  how- 
ever, did  have  a  change  of  faith  and  returned  to  New  York  and 


88         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

resumed  charge  of  his  old  New-York  Gazette  with  the  issue  of 
November  11,  Number  1307.  How  Gaine  made  his  peace  with 
the  British  authorities  was  never  told.  He  did,  however,  re- 
main loyal  to  the  Crown  until  the  end  of  the  war.  For  this 
change  to  the  Royalist  cause,  Philip  Freneau  the  poet  of  the 
Revolution,  hurled  a  scorching  poem  at  Gaine.  But  Gaine  was 
never  trusted  by  the  Royalists,  for  they  appointed  James  Riv- 
ington  " Printer  to  the  King's  Most  Excellent  Majesty,"  and 
made  Rivington's  New-York  Loyal  Gazette,  started  after  the  office 
of  The  Gazetteer  had  been  wrecked,  the  official  paper.  They  even 
'prevented  Gaine  from  printing  in  his  sheet  the  more  important 
items  of  news.  After  the  evacuation  of  New  York,  by  the 
British,  Gaine  suspended  his  Gazette  on  November  10,  1783, 
crossed  out  the  word  "Crown"  hi  his  imprint,  " Bible  and 
Crown,"  and  confined  himself  principally  to  the  printing  and 
.  selling  of  books. 

EXTRAMURAL   PUBLICATIONS 

During  the  War  of  the  Revolution,  whenever  the  British  suc- 
ceeded in  occupying  a  strategic  city  there  was  nothing  left  for 
the  patriotic  printer  to  do  but  to  suspend  publication  or  take  his 
newspaper  elsewhere.  John  Holt,  the  publisher  of  The  New  York 
Journal,  for  example,  was  forced  to  remove  his  paper  to  King- 
ston when  New  York  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  British.  His  first 
issue  of  The  Journal,  with  the  Kingston  date-line  was  July  7, 
1777.  In  making  its  bow  to  Kingston,  The  Journal  said:  — 

After  remaining,  for  ten  months  past,  overwhelmed  and  sunk,  in  a 
sea  of  tyrannic  violence  and  rapine,  The  New  York  Journal,  just  emerg- 
ing from  the  waves,  faintly  rears  its  languid  head,  to  hail  its  former  friends 
and  supporters,  —  to  assure  them  that  unchanged  in  its  spirit  and  prin- 
ciples, the  utmost  exertions  of  its  influence,  as  heretofore,  will  ever  be 
applied,  with  a  sacred  regard  to  the  defence  and  support  of  American 
rights  and  freedom,  the  advancement  of  true  religion  and  virtue  and 
the  happiness  of  mankind. 

Holt  found  it  necessary  to  make  another  change.  After  he  had 
brought  out  an  issue  on  October  13,  1777,  Kingston  was  burned 
by  the  British  three  days  later,  and  he  removed  to  Poughkeep- 
sie  where  he  revived  his  Journal  with  the  date-line  on  May  11, 


REVOLUTIONARY  PERIOD  89 

1778.  He  discontinued  publication  in  Poughkeepsie  on  Janu- 
ary 6,  1782,  and  returned  the  latter  part  of  1783  to  New  York, 
where  he  again  brought  out  his  paper  on  November  22  of  that 
year.  Other  publishers  of  the  period  were  forced  to  make  simi- 
lar arrangements.  Edes  took  his  Gazette  from  Boston  to  Water- 
town;  Thomas,  his  Massachusetts  Spy  from  Boston  to  Worces- 
ter; Loudon,  his  New-York  Packet  to  Fishkill;  South  wick,  his 
Newport  Mercury  to  Attlebury;  Dunlap,  his  Pennsylvania  Packet 
from  Philadelphia  to  Lancaster,  etc. 

NEWSPAPER  OFFICE   MOBBED 

The  Royalist  papers,  published  under  the  protection  and  the 
encouragement  of  the  British  authorities,  continued  to  issue 
their  numbers,  but  they  experienced  difficulties  and  hardships 
almost  equal  to  those  of  the  patriotic  papers,  for  local  citizens, 
sympathizing  as  they  did  with  the  cause  of  national  independ- 
ence, positively  refused  to  support  journals  with  Tory  editorial 
policies.  But  of  these  Tory  sheets,  possibly  the  most  hated  as 
well  as  the  most  feared  was  Rivingtoris  New-York  Gazetteer;  or 
the  Connecticut,  New  Jersey,  Hudson's  River  and  Quebec  Weekly 
Advertiser,  which  James  Rivington,  once  a  member  of  a  famous 
English  publishing  house  of  his  name,  established  in  New  York 
April  22,  1773.  So  bitter  became  the  feeling  against  this  news- 
paper that  its  shop  was  twice  mobbed  during  1777.  The  second 
time  a  thorough  job  was  done;  a  group  of  armed  men  on  No- 
vember 27  rode  into  New  York,  broke  into  the  building,  de- 
stroyed the  press,  and  carried  away  the  type,  which  was  later 
melted  into  bullets  for  the  use  of  the  "Rebels,"  as  Rivington 
called  the  Whigs.  But  Rivington,  securing  from  England  new 
press  and  type,  brought  out  The  New-York  Loyal  Gazette,  which 
became,  as  has  already  been  asserted,  the  official  organ  of  the 
British  in  New  York. 

AID   FROM   ARMY 

Because  the  New  York  newspapers  were  supervised  by  the 
British  authorities,  New  Jersey  as  a  "war  measure"  promoted 
the  establishment  of  The  New- Jersey  Journal  at  Chatham.  The 
Revolutionary  forces  under  Washington  at  Morristown,  five 


90         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

miles  away,  helped  its  publisher,  Shepard  Kollock,  with  "Nine 
Hundred  Wt  of  old  Tent  Unfitt  for  service,"  and  later  with 
"  Eight  Hundred  Three  Quarters  &  Twelve  pound  old  Tent 
Cloath,"  and  still  later,  "Two  Bundles  Old  Tent  Rags  w*  Two 
Hundred  One  Quarter,"  also  "One  Other  Bagg  w*  Two  Hun- 
dred One  Quarter  old  tent  Rags";  these  rags  and  old  tents  were 
for  the  manufacture  of  paper  which  Kollock  so  sadly  needed. 
In  addition,  the  army  out  of  its  scanty  stores  actually  furnished 
a  very  large  amount  of  white  paper  in  order  that  the  soldiers 
might  have  a  newspaper  which  told  of  the  progress  of  struggles 
in  other  colonies. 

PHILADELPHIA   PAPERS 

During  the  last  few  years  of  the  American  Revolution,  the  ^ 
most  important  newspaper  in  Philadelphia  was  The  Freeman1  s  ~ 
Journal;  or  The  North- American  Intelligencer.   It  first  appeared 
on  April  25,  1781,  and  was  edited  and  printed  by  Francis  Bailey. 
Its  policy  was  thus  announced  editorially:  "  To  encourage  genius, 
to  deter  vice,  and  disrobe  tyranny  and  misrule  of  every  plu- 
mage."  Its  most  distinct  service,  however,  was  in  reporting 
the  progress  of  the  war.   In  its  issue  for  October  24,  1781,  it 
announced  the  surrender  of  General  Charles  Earl  Cornwallis  in 
lines  which  reached  clear  across  the  page.    In  addition  to  its     / 
patriotic  news  was  its  satire.  Philip  Freneau,  who  later  achieved  w 
prominence  through  his  editorship  of  The  National  Gazette,  con- 
tributed to  The  Freeman's  Journal  numerous  bits  of  satirical 
verse.    Another  paper  in  Philadelphia  started  during  the  War 
was  The  Pennsylvania  Evening  Post,  established  January  24, 
1775,  by  Benjamin  Towne.   During  the  early  part  of  the  War 
the  paper  was  very  friendly  to  the  American  cause,  but  later 
changed  its  editorial  policy  when  the  British  occupied  Phila- 
delphia.   After  the  evacuation  of  that  city  The  Evening  Postt 
again  announced  its  devotion  to  the  Whig  principles,  but  was 
forced  to  suspend  for  want  of  popular  support,  due  to  its  policy 
while  the  British  were  in  the  city.    The  Pennsylvania  Journal, 
established   December   2,  1742,  as  The  Weekly  Advertiser,  or 
The  Pennsylvania  Journal,  by  William  Bradford,  was  in  many* 
respects,  and  these  the  most  essential,  more  independent  in 


REVOLUTIONARY  PERIOD  91 

tone  than  The  Pennsylvania  Gazette  and  was  much  the  better 
newspaper  during  the  Revolutionary  Period. 

When  the  British  occupied  Philadelphia  a  local  printer  took 
his  printing-press  and  went  to  Egg-Harbour  where  he  published 
The  Minute  Intelligencer.  Evidently  the  Tory  press  was  not  the 
only  one  which  published  sensational  news,  as  the  following 
item  quoted  from  The  Minnie  Intelligencer  will  show:  — 

It  is  said  the  English  Ministry,  having  no  hopes  of  subduing  America 
by  force  of  arms,  whilst  the  inhabitants  retain  their  native  virtue,  have 
instructed  the  officers  in  their  army  to  try  a  more  certain  method  of 
success;  by  debauching  the  morals  of  the  men,  and  seducing  the  virtue 
of  the  women.  For  this  purpose  play-houses  are  opened,  gaming-tables 
established,  and  balls  promoted,  in  a  city  languishing  under  a  scarcity 
of  the  necessities  of  life. 

In  striking  contrast  to  The  Minute  Intelligencer  was  The 
Pennsylvania  Ledger,  or  The  Virginia,  Maryland,  Pennsylvania 
and  New- Jersey  Weekly  Advertiser,  —  Heaven  save  the  name,  — 
started  in  Philadelphia  on  January  28,  1775,  by  James  Hum- 
phreys. He  was  extremely  loyal  to  the  Crown,  and  because  of 
his  somewhat  rabid  tendencies  he  was  forced  to  suspend  publi- 
cation in  November,  1776.  When  the  British,  however,  took 
possession  of  the  city,  Humphreys  seized  the  opportunity  to 
resume  publication  of  his  sheet  which  he  as  promptly  discon- 
tinued when  they  left. 

SOUTHERN   SHEETS 

While  the  British  were  in  control  of  Charleston,  several  print- 
ers in  the  army  conducted  a  newspaper  called  The  Royal  South 
Carolina  Gazette,  printed  by  Roberts,  MacDonald,  and  Cameron. 
Revolutionary  forces  in  South  Carolina  also  had  an  army  print- 
ing-press and  issued  many  " near-newspapers"  telling  of  the 
activities  of  Green's  army.  The  Royal  Gazette  always  referred 
to  them  as  The  Rebel  Gazette.  But  when  the  British  evacuated 
Charleston,  December  14,  1782,  there  was  no  newspaper  left  to 
tell  the  news  of  the  place.  This  condition  did  not  obtain  long,  for 
on  February  15,  1783,  Nathan  Childs  brought  out  The  South 
Carolina  Weekly  Gazette;  on  January  18,  1786,  the  paper  ap- 
peared as  a  daily  under  the  name,  The  Charleston  Morning  Post 


92         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

and  Daily  Advertiser  —  later  changed  to  The  City  Gazette,  or 
Daily  Advertiser.  Associated  in  the  publication  of  this  paper 
was  Peter  Freneau,  a  brother  of  Philip  Freneau  who  was  the 
poet  of  the  Revolution  and  later  the  editor  of  The  National 
Gazette. 

A  SCOOP 

On  September  3,  1783,  The  Gazette  of  Providence,  Rhode 
Island,  printed  one  of  the  great  scoops  of  the  period  when  it 
announced:  "By  the  brig  Don  Golvez,  Capt.  Silas  Jones,  ar- 
rived in  the  river  from  London,  we  have  received  a  copy  of  the 
long  looked-f or  Definitive  Treaty,  which  we  embrace  the  earliest 
occasion  of  handing  to  the  public." 

EDITOKIAL   CHANGES 

If  editorial  expression  before  the  Revolutionary  Period  was 
feeble  and  timid,  as  has  been  so  often  asserted,  it  was  not 
because  the  colonial  editors  were  weaklings  or  cowards,  but 
because  they  knew  that  the  publication  of  any  criticism  of  the 
Government  meant  the  suppression  of  their  papers  on  account 
of  the  censorship.  After  the  Stamp  Act  the  newspapers  became 
more  critical  and  debates  became  more  numerous.  When  the 
printer  found,  as  he  did  in  the  case  of  the  Stamp  Act,  that  he 
could  now  violate  the  censorship  with  impunity,  he  became 
braver  and  more  critical  in  his  editorial  expression,  and  en- 
joyed for  the  first  time  a  freedom  which  rapidly  changed  the 
character  of  the  American  press. 

HANDLING   OF   NEWS 

In  spite  of  the  fact  that  daily  newspapers  did  not  make  their 
appearance  until  after  the  Republic  had  been  established,  the 
newspapers  showed  unusual  enterprise  in  printing  the  news  of 
the  more  important  battles.  Instead  of  waiting  to  insert  such 
accounts  in  regular  issues,  theyjrinted  handbills  which  were 
hawked  on  the  streets  and  carried  by  the  post-riders  much  the 
same  as  extra  editions  are  to-day.  These  handbills,  of  which 
possibly  The  Boston  Gazette  issued  the  largest  number,  did  not 
hesitate  to  employ  large  type  whenever  the  Americans  were  vie- 


REVOLUTIONARY  PERIOD  93 

torious.  When  Lord  Cornwallis  surrendered  at  Yorktown,  pro- 
vision must  have  been  made  for  the  prompt  dispatch  of  the 
news  because  many  of  the  handbills  contained  the  expression, 
"by  special  express."  Benjamin  Towne,  even  after  he  had  sus- 
pended publication  of  The  Pennsylvania  Evening  Post,  occa- 
sionally printed  handbills  under  the  head,  "All  the  News  for 
Two  Coppers."  These  he  sold  on  the  streets  of  Philadelphia.  In 
spite  of  the  stereotyped  words,  "Important  Intelligence,"  many 
of  these  handbills  gave  the  gist  of  the  news  in  large  headlines 
across  the  page. 

ADVERTISING   OF   PERIOD 

During  the  early  part  of  the  Revolutionary  Period,  editors 
not  only  increased  the  stock  of  patent  medicines  carried  on  their 
shelves,  but  did  a  more  extensive  business  in  the  selling  of  slaves. 
The  following  advertisement  from  Hugh  Gaine's  Weekly  Mer- 
cury for  January  25,  1768,  is  typical:  - 

To  be  sold  an  excellent  negro  Wench  about  twenty  years  old,  with 
a  male  Child  about  three  months  old;  the  Wench  has  had  the  Small- 
pox, can  cook,  wash  and  iron,  can  be  well  recommended,  and  is  sold  for 
no  other  fault  than  being  too  fruitful.  Enquire  of  H.  Gaine. 

This  advertisement  was  followed  by  another  also  offering  a 
slave  for  sale,  but  in  this  case  one  should  "  enquire  of  the  printer" 
—  Hugh  Gaine.  Strange  as  it  may  seem,  the  editorial  trade  in 
^slaves-was  possibly  the  largest  in  Boston.  Many  of  the  adver- 
tisements  of  runaway  slaves  differed  slightly  from  those  of  the 
Colonial  Period  in  that  personal  descriptions  included  such 
items  as  "an  iron  collar  around  his  neck,"  "manacles  on  his 
wrists,"  "three  scars  on  his  back  where  he  was  burned  for  run- 
ning away  two  years  ago,"  etc.  The  interpretation  of  such  items 
belongs  to  another  history  than  that  of  journalism. 

Many  of  the  papers  fairly  bristled  with  advertisements  like 
the  following:  " I  intend  to  leave  this  Colony  immediately.  Pay- 
ment of  all  debts  to  me  should  be  made  at  once.  (Signed 

)"  A  collection  of  these  advertisements  would  make  a 

fairly  good  index  of  the  leading  Tories  who  fled  to  foreign  coun- 
tries to  avoid  the  disorders  of  the  Revolution. 


94         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Toward  the  close  of  the  period,  advertisements  of  lotteries 
occupied  much  space  in  the  newspapers.  In  most  cases  these 
lotteries  were  conducted  not  for  personal  gain,  but  for  village 
and  city  improvement.  Especially  interesting  to-day  are  those 
advertisements  which  announced  lotteries  for  the  benefit  of 
churches  and  colleges.  If  these  advertisements  were  truthful, 
—  and  there  is  no  reason  to  suppose  they  were  otherwise,  —  lot- 
teries equipped  the  libraries  of  our  higher  institutions  of  learn- 
ing, remodeled  houses  of  worship,  put  bells  in  the  steeples  of 
churches,  repaired  roads,  erected  bridges  over  rivers,  and  did  many 
other  things  for  which  communities  to-day  are  commonly  taxed. 

An  advertisement  in  The  Virginia  Gazette  showed  that  a  local 
church  had  gone  into  the  wholesale  tobacco  business  and  was 
evidently  trying  to  market  through  the  columns  of  the  press  the 
nicotia  leaves  turned  in  by  parishioners  in  payment  for  subscrip- 
tions to  the  rector's  salary. 

Benjamin  Franklin  has  already  been  mentioned  as  an  able 
writer  of  advertisements.  An  excellent  example  of  his  work  will 
be  found  in  an  advertisement  which  he  wrote  for  George  Wash- 
ington, inserted  in  the  first  number  of  The  Maryland  Journal  and 
The  Baltimore  Advertiser,  which  William  Goddard  brought  out 
on  Friday,  August  20,  1773.  Most  vividly  did  Franklin  tell  how 
Washington,  "  having  obtained  patents  for  upwards  of  twenty 
thousand  acres  of  land  on  the  Ohio  and  Great  Kanhawa  Rivers," 
was  going  to  lease  sections  upon  moderate  terms  —  a  number 
of  years  rent  free  provided  settlers  cleared,  fenced,  tilled,  laid 
down  good  grass  for  meadow,  and  set  out  at  least  fifty  good  fruit 
trees.  Franklin  did  not  hesitate  to  add  for  Washington  this  con- 
cluding bit  of  comment :  — • 

And  it  may  not  be  amiss  further  to  observe,  that  if  the  scheme  for 
establishing  a  new  government  on  the  Ohio,  in  the  manner  talked  of, 
should  ever  be  affected,  these  must  be  among  the  most  valuable  lands 
in  it,  not  only  on  account  of  the  goodness  of  soil,  and  the  other  advan- 
tages above  enumerated,  but  from  their  contiguity  to  the  seat  of  gov- 
ernment, which  more  than  probable  will  be  fixed  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Great  Kanhawa. 

This  advertisement,  it  may  be  remarked  incidentally,  was  ex- 
ceedingly profitable  to  Washington. 


REVOLUTIONARY  PERIOD  95 

PRINTING-PRESSES   OF   PERIOD 

Newspapers  continued  to  be  printed  on  the  ordinary  flat-bed 
hand-press.  The  size  of  the  editions  of  some  papers  had  become 
so  large  that  the  man  who  pulled  the  levers  complained  of  back- 
aches. To  overcome  this  difficulty,  inventors  had  already 
started  to  find  some  way  out  of  the  difficulty.  Before  the  close 
of  the  period,  Benjamin  Dearborn,  publisher  of  The  New  Hamp- 
shire Gazette,  had  invented  a  wheel  press  which  would  print  the 
whole  side  of  a  sheet  at  one  pull  of  the  lever.  No  great  mechani- 
cal improvement  in  the  printing-press  was  made,  however,  until 
the  beginning  of  the  next  century  when  a  revolving  cylinder  was 
substituted  for  the  lever. 

SMALL   CIRCULATION 

The  circulation  of  individual  papers  during  the  Revolutionary 
Period  still  remained  small.  James  Rivington,  with  Number  78 
of  The  New-York  Gazetteer;  or  the  Connecticut,  New  Jersey,  Hud- 
son's River  and  Quebec  Weekly  Advertiser,  boasted  in  October, 
1774,  that  he  sent  his  paper  to  every  colony  of  North  America, 
and  announced  with  pride  that  it  had  a  circulation  of  thirty-six 
hundred.  As  Rivington's  paper  later  came  to  be  known  as  The 
Lying  Gazette,  it  is  barely  possible  that  he  was  also  a  "circula- 
tion liar."  His  paper  did  have,  however,  one  of  the  widest  dis- 
tributions of  any  of  the  period. 

POST  VS.  PRESS 

John  Holt,  in  his  New  York  Journal  for  October  30, 1766,  com- 
plained most  bitterly  that  his  rival,  James  Parker,  prevented 
the  post-riders  of  New  Jersey  from  distributing  his  paper  to 
customers  and  had  substituted  in  its  place  the  newspaper  pub- 
lished by  Parker,  "as  his  Paper  is  printed  in  the  same  Form,  and 
under  the  same  Title  that  mine  used  to  be,  it  is  probable  many 
of  my  Customers  may  not  have  attended  to  the  Difference  of 
the  Printer's  Name.  The  Meanness  and  Dishonesty  of  this 
Proceeding,  I  shall  leave  to  the  Resentment  of  my  Custom- 
ers, who  will  determine,  whether  to  encourage  such  a  Man,  by 
accepting  his  Papers,  or  whether  to  adhere  to  the  Printer, 


96         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

they  voluntarily  thought  fit  to  employ."  Holt  then  com- 
plained that  Parker,  his  rival  printer  who  had  control  of  the 
post-office,  ought  not  have  such  authority,  "an  arbitrary  power, 
greater  than  that  ever  exercised  in  England." 

At  the  time  William  Goddard  started  his  Maryland  Journal, 
August  20,  1773,  newspapers  were  under  an  espionage:  if  they 
contained  any  reflection  on  the  Royal  Government  they  were 
promptly  destroyed.  Postmasters  loyal  to  the  British  Gov- 
ernment carefully  examined  all  copies  offered  for  transmission 
through  the  mails.  In  order  to  get  around  this  annoyance, 
Goddard  ran  his  own  post  to  Philadelphia.  Leaving  his  sister, 
Mary  K.  Goddard,  in  charge  of  his  newspaper,  Goddard  in  Oc- 
tober, 1773,  made  a  tour  through  the  Northern  colonies.  While 
on  this  trip  he  arranged  for  "an  American  post  office  system  on 
constitutional  principles"  to  put  into  effect  his  plan  for  the  dis- 
tribution of  newspapers  from  Massachusetts  to  Georgia. 

FIRST  STRIKE  OF  PRINTERS 

During  the  time  that  the  British  were  in  control  of  New  York 
times  were  unusually  hard,  especially  for  printers.  The  price 
of  provisions  had  been  repeatedly  advanced.  On  account  of  the 
blockade  the  supply  of  firewood,  the  only  fuel  of  the  time,  was 
greatly  reduced,  and  what  there  was,  sold  for  a  price  beyond 
the  purse  of  the  printer.  Rents  had  been  raised,  and  local  taxes 
had  been  increased.  Consequently,  there  was  some  justification 
for  a  meeting  of  printers  for  the  expressed  purpose  of  insisting 
upon  an  advance  in  their  wages.  Meeting  at  the  home  of  one  of 
their  number,  they  fixed  upon  what  they  considered  a  fair  re- 
muneration for  their  work  and  presented  their  demands  to  the 
newspapers  by  which  they  were  employed.  The  newspapers 
consented  to  the  increase,  except  the  one  owned  by  James  Riv- 
ington.  Upon  his  refusal  to  grant  the  increase  the  printers  for 
his  paper  refused  to  work  any  longer  at  the  old  wage.  Finding 
himself  unable  to  print  his  newspaper,  Rivington  at  last  yielded, 
and  the  printers  came  back.  In  all  probability  this  was  the  first 
strike  of  printers  in  America.  Justification  for  this  strike  will 
be  found  in  the  fact  that  the  printers  were  receiving  a  wage  of 
less  than  one  dollar  per  day. 


REVOLUTIONARY  PERIOD  97 

PAPER   FOR   PRESSES 

The  war  automatically  ended  the  importation  of  white  paper 
from  abroad.  Paper-mills  had  increased  until  there  were  over 
forty  in  the  country.  Several  of  these  were  laid  waste  by  Brit- 
ish soldiers,  and  others  lay  idle  because  employees  had  enlisted 
in  the  army.  The  remaining  mills  were  unequal  to  supply  the 
demand,  so  that  during  the  latter  part  of  the  Revolutionary 
Period  and  for  some  time  later  the  newspapers  experienced  great 
difficulty  in  securing  the  paper  on  which  to  print  the  news. 

Several  sheets  were  forced  to  refuse  subscriptions  until  con- 
ditions should  improve.  The  New  Jersey  Gazette  on  April  23, 
1778,  announced,  "No  more  Subscriptions  can  be  received  at 
the  present  by  this  GAZETTE  for  Want  of  Paper."  The  Su- 
preme Executive  Council  of  Pennsylvania  was  very  anxious  to 
subscribe  for  The  New  York  Packet,  which  had  been  established 
in  New  York,  January  4,  1776,  but  was  then  published  at  Fish- 
kill,  New  York.  In  answering  the  request  Samuel  Loudon  re- 
ported that  on  account  of  the  scarcity  of  paper  he  had  printed 
but  few  sheets  for  the  past  three  months,  but  that  a  parcel  was 
now  on  its  way  to  him  and  that  in  two  weeks  he  would  begin  to 
forward  the  papers  to  the  Council. 

ADVERTISEMENTS   FOR  RAGS 

Advertisements  for  rags  for  the  paper-mills  continued  to  ap- 
pear frequently  in  papers  of  all  sections  of  the  country  where 
presses  had  been  established.  Especially  urgent  were  these  ap- 
peals in  such  papers  as  The  Boston  Gazette,  The  Providence 
Gazette,  The  Albany  Gazette,  The  Maryland  Gazette,  The  Hudson 
Gazette,  The  New-Jersey  Gazette,  The  North  Carolina  Gazette,  The 
Fayetteville  Gazette  —  to  use  simply  the  Gazettes.  The  Fayette- 
ville  Gazette  asserted  "that  the  economical  Housewife  who  sup- 
plies the  paper  mill  with  rags,  serves  her  country  in  her  sphere 
as  well  as  the  soldier  who  fights  for  it  does  in  his."  The  Chelsea 
Courier,  at  Norwich,  Connecticut,  suggested  that  every  hus- 
band should  say  to  his  wife,  "Molly,  make  a  rag  bag  —  and  put 
it  under  the  shelf  where  the  family  Bible  lies."  The  Massachu- 
setts Spy  Sit  Worcester  expressed  much  the  same  thought  when 


98         HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

it  requested  "the  fair  Daughters  of  Liberty  not  to  neglect  to 
serve  their  country  by  saving  for  the  Paper  Mill  all  Linen 
and  Cotton  Rags/'  and  remarked,  "If  the  Ladies  should  not 
make  a  fortune  by  this  piece  of  Economy,  they  will  at  least  have 
the  Satisfaction  of  knowing  they  are  doing  an  essential  Service 
to  the  Community,  which,  with  the  ten  Shillings  per  pound,  the 
price  now  given  for  clean  white  rags,  they  must  be  sensible  will 
be  a  sufficient  reward."  The  North  Carolina  Gazette  urged  young 
ladies  to  send  to  the  paper-mill  "Any  old  handkerchief  no  longer 
fit  to  cover  their  snowy  breasts."  The  Boston  Gazette  printed  a 
"Rag  Lesson"  for  children  and  servants,  especially  girls,  and 
respectfully  submitted  to  the  consideration  of  all  "Parents, 
Masters,  and  Mistresses,  but  particularly  to  the  Women  of 
every  House:  you  all  know  that  Paper  is  made  of  Rags.  You 
will  therefore  do  much  good,  if  you  will  promote  the  Manufac- 
ture of  that  useful  article  by  saving  all  Rags,  fine  or  coarse,  of 
whatever  colour,  made  of  Linen  or  Cotton  —  Don't  sweep  them 
into  the  Fire,  or  out  of  the  House:  but  be  prudent,  and  attend 
to  the  Direction  and  Advice  of  the  wisest  and  best  Person  that 
ever  lived  —  *  Gather  up  the  fragments,  that  nothing  be  lost.' 
Although  the  Quantity  you  may  save  should  be  but  small  and 
you  should  think  it  of  little  Consequence  in  itself,  consider  that 
when  it  is  put  together  with  other  Savings,  it  will  increase  the 
heap;  and  that,  as  the  Scotch  Proverb  says,  'Many  Mickles 
Make  a  Muckle.' '  The  New- Jersey  Gazette  expected  "Store- 
keepers who  wish  well  to  their  Country  to  lend  their  Assistance 
in  taking  Rags  in  and  to  whom  a  Compensation  will  be  made." 
An  advertisement  in  The  Providence  Gazette  announced:  "Four 
Coppers  per  Pound  will  be  given  for  fine  linen  and  cotton  Rags, 
and  two  Coppers  for  coarse,  by  John  O.  Waterman,  at  the 
Paper  Mills  in  Providence,  and  by  the  Printer  of  The  Gazette:  A 
cart  from  the  Paper  Mills  will  go  through  the  Town  of  Providence 
once  a  Month  for  the  Purpose  of  Collecting  Rags."  Hugh  Gaine 
early  in  the  Revolutionary  Period  experienced  such  difficulty 
in  getting  paper  for  his  press  that  he  offered  prizes  to  persons 
who  delivered  the  most  rags  to  the  office  of  his  paper  in  New 
York,  The  prizes  were  ten  dollars,  eight  dollars,  and  five  dol- 
lars, and  were  in  addition  to  the  regular  price  paid  for  rags.  On 


REVOLUTIONARY  PERIOD  99 

account  of  the  scarcity  of  paper,  numerous  newspapers  were 
forced  to  raise  their  subscription  price. 

The  paper  from  American  mills  was  of  inferior  quality,  be- 
cause in  the  rush  to  supply  the  demand  it  had  to  be  taken  wet 
from  the  machines  and  was  often  unfinished  by  the  workmen. 
The  poor  printing  of  the  latter  part  of  the  period  was  due,  in 
many  cases,  to  the  poor  quality  of  the  paper  put  on  the  press. 


CHAPTER   VIII 
PERIOD  OF  EARLY  REPUBLIC 

1783 — 1812  fi 

WHEN  the  American  colonies  secured  their  independence  and 
faced  the  problem  of  self-government,  the  conditions  were  ex- 
tremely favorable  for  a  revival  of  papers  which  had  suspended 
publication  during  the  war  and  also  for  the  establishment  of 
many  new  journals  to  mirror  the  radical  changes  of  the  times. 
The  few  Tory  sheets  which  had  survived  through  the  coopera- 
tion of  British  arms  now  changed  their  policies  and  became  loyal 
supporters  of  the  new  Republic.  The  people,  ever  mindful  of  the 
past,  refused  to  subscribe  or  to  support  such  papers.  After  brief 
struggles  for  existence  they  discontinued  publication  and  their 
publishers  made  a  living  as  booksellers,  stationers,  job  printers,  etc. 

Controversies  which  soon  arose  between  States  became  so 
bitter  as  almost  to  lead  to  civil  war.  They  changed  even  the 
colorless  and  purposeless  newspaper  into  a  lighting  organ.  Edi- 
torial policies  were  largely  determined  by  geographical  location. 
To  this  stimulus  may  be  attributed  the  influence  secured  by  the 
local  press  —  an  influence  even  greater  than  that  of  the  Revo- 
lutionary Period. 

The  debates  over  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution  broke 
down  the  geographical  lines  and  divided  the  press  as  well  as  the 
people  into  two  groups,  one  which  favored  and  the  other  which 
opposed.  Some  of  the  newspapers  which  had  been  most  urgent 
in  demanding  nothing  but  absolute  independence  from  England 
were  among  those  which  sought  to  delay  or  even  to  defeat  the 
adoption  of  the  Federal  Constitution.  The  subsequent  death 
of  some  of  these  journals  was  due  to  the  fact  that  however  sin- 
cere they  might  have  been  they  took  what  later  proved  to  be 
the  unpopular  side  of  this  great  issue.  Others,  often  new  pub- 
lications, met  with  immediate  favor  because  of  the  fervor  with 
which  they  advocated  the  needs  of  such  a  document. 


PERIOD  OF  EARLY  REPUBLIC  101 

NEWSPAPERS   CHIEFLY  POLITICAL  TRACTS 

After  the  Constitution  was  adopted  political  leaders  found 
that  they  needed  mouthpieces  for  a  wider  expression  of  their 
views.  They  divided  themselves  into  parties  of  which  the  com- 
mon people  knew  little  or  nothing.  To  get  the  people  to  take 
sides  on  political  questions  they  founded  newspapers  which, 
while  giving  a  little  news,  did  more  to  advance  and  spread  the 
doctrines  of  party  leaders,  for  politics  tended  to  make  the  jour- 
nals of  the  period  not  newspapers  in  the  modern  sense  of  the 
term,  but  chiefly  political  tracts :  the  moral  essay  of  the  Colonial 
Period  was  omitted  and  in  its  place  was  substituted  a  coarse  and 
frequently  vulgar  attack  upon  a  rival.  Papers  conceived  amid 
intense  political  feeling  and  born  simply  to  be  bulletin  boards  for 
party  leaders,  continued  to  increase  in  number  in  spite  of  a  high 
death-rate.  At  a  political  meeting  it  was  considered  quite 
proper  to  pass  a  resolution  calling  upon  "our  party  newspapers 
to  attack  at  once  the  reputations  of  all  the  leading  Federalists 
in  the  State,"  or  vice  versa,  for  most  papers  were  either  Federal 
or  Republican. 

PERSONAL  ATTACKS  OF  PRESS     X 

In  view  of  such  conditions  the  newspapers  of  the  last  decade 
of  the  eighteenth  century  —  with  here  and  there  an  exception 
only  to  prove  the  rule  —  abounded  in  little  else  than  libelous 
and  scand&knis jjersonaljittacks.  The  new  freedom  of  the  press 
promoted  not  truth  but  calumnies  and  falsehoods.  Chief  Jus- 
tice McKean,  in  a  libel  case  (1798)  against  William  Cobbett,  of 
Peter  Porcupine  Gazette  in  the  City  of  Brotherly  Love,  remarked : 

Every  one  who  has  in  him  the  sentiments  either  of  a  Christian  or  a 
gentleman  cannot  but  be  highly  offended  at  the  envenomed  scurrility 
that  has  raged  in  pamphlets  and  newspapers  printed  in  Philadelphia  for 
several  years  past,  insomuch  that  libelling  has  become  a  national  crime, 
and  distinguishes  us  not  only  from  all  the  states  around  us,  but  from  the 
whole  civilized  world.  Our  satire  has  been  nothing  but  ribaldry  and 
billingsgate;  the  contest  has  been  who  could  call  names  in  the  greatest 
variety  of  phrases;  who  could  mangle  the  greatest  number  of  characters, 
or  who  could  excel  in  the  magnitude  of  their  lies;  hence  the  honor  of 
families  has  been  stained,  the  highest  posts  rendered  cheap  and  vile  in 
the  sight  of  the  people,  and  the  greatest  services  and  virtue  blasted. 


1C2       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

This  opinion  had  already  been  held  by  Benjamin  Franklin 
who  said  in  a  comment  on  the  political  change  in  the  press :  — 

Now  many  of  our  printers  make  no  scruple  of  gratifying  the  malice 

Sof  individuals  by  false  accusations  of  the  fairest  characters  among 
themselves,  augmenting  animosity  even  to  the  producing  of  duels,  and 
are,  moreover,  so  indiscreet  as  to  print  scurrilous  reflections  on  the  gov- 
ernment of  neighboring  states,  and  even  on  the  conduct  of  our  best 
national  allies,  which  may  be  attended  with  the  most  pernicious  con- 
sequences. 

PASSAGE   OF   SEDITION   LAWS 

That  the  American  press  from  1790  to  1800  was  probably  as 
powerful  in  its  influence  as  at  any  time  in  its  history,  is  not  to  be 
denied.  But  the  violence  and  vituperation  of  the  party  press  led 
to  the  first  attempt  on  the  part  of  the  American  Government  to 
regulate  the  newspaper  press.  The  year  of  1798  saw  the  passage 
v>  of  the  Alien  andSedition  ]pa.ws.  A  section  of  the  latter  enacted : — 

That  if  any  person  shall  write,  print,  utter,  or  publish,  or  shall  cause 
or  procure  to  be  written,  printed,  uttered  or  published,  or  shall  know- 
ingly and  willingly  assist  or  aid  in  writing,  printing,  uttering,  or  pub- 
lishing any  false,  scandalous  and  malicious  writing  or  writings  against 
the  government  of  the  United  States,  or  either  house  of  the  Congress 
of  the  United  States,  or  the  President  of  the  United  States,  with  intent 
to  defame  the  said  government,  or  either  house  of  the  said  Congress, 
or  the  said  President,  or  to  bring  them,  or  either  of  them,  into  contempt 
or  disrepute;  or  to  excite  against  them,  or  either  or  any  of  them,  the 
hatred  of  the  good  people  of  the  United  States,  or  to  stir  up  sedition 
within  the  United  States,  or  to  excite  any  unlawful  combinations 
therein,  for  opposing  or  resisting  any  law  of  the  United  States,  or  any 
act  of  the  President  of  the  United  States  done  in  pursuance  of  any  such 
law  or  of  the  powers  in  him  vested  by  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States,  or  to  resist,  oppose,  or  defeat  any  such  law  or  act,  or  to  aid, 
encourage,  or  abet  any  hostile  designs  of  any  foreign  nation  against  the 
United  States,  their  people  or  government,  then  such  person,  being 
thereof  convicted  before  any  court  of  the  United  States  having  juris- 
diction thereof,  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  not  exceeding  $2,000,  and 
by  imprisonment  not  exceeding  two  years. 

EDITORS   JAILED 

There  were  several  prosecutions  under  this  act.  Abij ah  Adams, 
publisher  of  The  Boston  Chronicle,  officially  called  bookkeeper 


PERIOD  OF  EARLY  REPUBLIC  103 

at  that  time,  was  indicted  for  libeling  the  Massachusetts  Legis- 
lature, found  guilty,  sentenced  to  jail  for  thirty  days,  and  forced 
to  give  bond  for  one  year  of  good  conduct.  The  editor  of  The 
Chronicle  was  Thomas  Adams,  who  was  confined  to  his  bed  at 
the  time,  but  he  wrote  for  his  paper  the  following  note:  —  "The 
patrons  of  The  Chronicle  may  still  depend  on  the  regular  supply 
of  their  papers.  The  Editor  is  on  the  bed  of  languishment  and 
the  bookkeeper  is  in  prison,  yet  the  Cause  of  Liberty  will  be 
supported  amid  these  distressing  circumstances." 

Charles  Holt,  publisher  of  The  Bee  at  New  London,  Connecti- 
cut, spent  three  months  in  jail  and  paid  a  fine  of  two  hundred 
dollars  because  he  censured  the  President  and  urged  men  not 
to  enlist  in  the  army.  The  Bee  was  a  party  opponent  of  John 
Adams,  and  after  Holt  had  served  his  time  and  paid  his  fine, 
he  took  his  paper  to  Hudson,  New  York.  Fifty  years  later  Con- 
gress refunded  the  fine  with  interest.  James  Thompson  Cal- 
lender,  editor  of  The  Richmond  Examiner,  paid  the  same  fine  as 
Holt,  but  was  sentenced  for  three  times  as  long  in  jail  for  de- 
faming the  press.  When  Jefferson  became  President,  he  par- 
doned Callender  and  had  the  fine  remitted. 

David  Frothingham,  editor  of  The  Argus,  of  New  York,  was 
indicted  for  libel  and  found  guilty  by  a  jury  which  recom- 
mended, however,  the  mercy  of  the  court.  He  was  fined  only  one 
hundred  dollars,  but  received  a  sentence  of  four  months.  Henry 
Croswell,  editor  of  The  Wasp,  was  indicted  for  printing  a  "scan- 
dalous, malicious  and  seditious  libel  concerning  Thomas  Jef- 
ferson." Alexander  Hamilton  was  one  of  the  lawyers  who 
appeared  for  Croswell.  In  spite  of  these  and  other  convictions, 
the  attempt  of  the  Government  to  reform  the  press  only  made 
bad  matters  worse. 

,  editor  of  The  Vermont  Gazette,  at  Benning- 


ton,  Vermont,  paid,  a  year  after  his  indictment,  a  fine  of  two 
hundred  dollars  and  spent  sixty  days  in  jail.  Benjamin  Frank- 
lin Bache,  of  The  General  Advertiser,  probably  escaped  a  still 
more  severe  sentence  because  his  death  ended  a  suit.  Inciden- 
tally it  may  be  remarked  that  because  of  the  abuse  his  news- 
paper had  heaped  upon  Washington,  he  had  been  thrashed  by 
Clement  Humphrey. 


104       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

WASHINGTON   ATTACKED 

Even  Washington  once  was  led  to  remark  that  "the  publica- 
tions in  Freneau's  [The  National  Gazette]  and  Bache's  [The  General 
Advertiser]  papers  were  outrages  on  common  decency.'7  They 
were,  especially  the  latter.  When  Washington  retired  from  the 
presidency  The  General  Advertiser,  in  its  issue  for  Monday, 
March  6,  1797,  incorrectly  dated  March  5,  thus  expressed  itself 
in  an  editorial  comment  disguised  as  correspondence:  - 

"  Lord,  now  lettest  thou  thy  servant  depart  in  peace,  for  mine  eyes 
have  seen  thy  salvation,"  was  the  pious  ejaculation  of  a  man  who  be- 
held a  flood  of  happiness  rushing  in  upon  mankind  —  If  ever  there 
was  a  time  that  would  license  the  reiteration  of  the  exclamation  that 
time  is  now  arrived;  for  the  man  who  is  the  source  of  all  the  misfor- 
tunes of  our  country,  is  this  day  reduced  to  a  level  with  his  fellow-citi- 
zens, and  is  no  longer  possessed  of  power  to  multiply  evils  upon  the 
United  States  —  If  ever  there  was  a  period  for  rejoicing  this  is  the 
moment  —  every  heart  in  unison  with  the  freedom  and  happiness  of 
the  people  ought  to  beat  high  with  exultation,  that  the  name  of  Wash- 
ington from  this  day  ceases  to  give  a  currency  to  political  iniquity,  and 
to  legalize  corruption  —  a  new  era  is  now  opening  up  upon  us,  an  era 
which  promises  much  to  the  people;  for  public  measures  must  now 
stand  upon  their  own  merits,  and  nefarious  projects  can  no  longer  be 
supported  by  a  name:  when  a  retrospect  is  taken  of  the  Washingtonian 
administration  for  eight  years,  it  is  a  subject  of  the  greatest  astonish- 
ment that  a  single  individual  should  have  cankered  the  principles  of 
republicanism  in  an  enlightened  people,  just  emerged  from  the  gulf 
of  despotism,  and  should  have  carried  his  designs  against  the  public 
liberty  so  far  as  to  have  put  in  jeopardy  its  very  existence  —  Such, 
however,  are  the  facts,  and  with  these  staring  us  in  the  face,  this  day 
ought  to  be  a  Jubilee  in  the  United  States. 

Yet  this  comment  was  mild  compared  with  the  coarser  utter- 
ances of  previous  issues  which  ought  not  to  be  reprinted  because 
of  their  vulgarity.  Federalists  were  accustomed  to  speak  of  The 
General  Advertiser  as  being  "  misconducted "  first  by  "Bennie 
Bache"  and  later  by  "Willie  Duane." 

PRESS   DIVIDED   OVER  BRITISH   TREATY 

Much  of  this  newspaper  hostility  toward  Washington,  it  may 
be  remarked  incidentally,  grew  out  of  the  British  Treaty  of 


PERIOD  OF  EARLY  REPUBLIC  105 

1794  which  divided  the  American  press  very  distinctly  in  the 
matter  of  editorial  opinion.  /Practically  every  Federal  news- 
paper gave  a  column  or  two  in  support  of  the  treaty.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  Republican-Democratic  press  fairly  teemed 
with  criticism  which  was  both  coarse  and  spiteful  in  its  attacks 
on  the  Administration.  These  editorial  reproaches,  expressed  - 
to  quote  Washington's  own  words  —  "in  such  exaggerated  and 
indecent  terms  as  could  scarcely  be  applied  to  a  Nero,  to  a  no- 
torious defaulter,  or  even  to  a  common  pickpocket,"  did  much 
to  strengthen  his  determination  to  retire  to  Mount  Vernon, 
for  Washington  had  become  extremely  sensitive  to  newspaper 
rebuke.  Perceiving  this,  Jefferson,  toward  the  last,  did  what  he 
could  to  stem  the  torrent  of  newspaper  abuse,  but  the  flood  was 
at  high  tide  and  could  not  be  dammed.  Federal  newspapers, 
however,  were  more  successful  in  their  attempts  to  dam  the 
Republican  press. 

PKESIDENTS  VS.   PRESS  ^C 

When  John  Adams  became  President  in  1797  he  was  even 
more  severely  attacked  in  the  press  than  Washington  had  been. 
But  his  Administration  fought  the  attacks.  Armed  by  the  Sedi- 
tion Law,  which  was  passed  the  following  year  and  which  has 
already  been  outlined,  it  sought  to  annihilate  the  Republican 
papers  which  it  could  not  force  to  surrender.  In  the  fight,  which 
lasted  four  years,  the  Federal  Party  lost,  for  the  people  rallied 
to  the  support  of  the  papers  and  defeated  Adams  in  the  election 
of  1800  by  putting  Thomas  Jefferson  in  the  presidential  chair. 
Jefferson  remitted  many  of  the  fines  imposed  upon  Republican 
editors,  but  was  later  forced  to  commence  suits  for  libels  upon  I 
himself  by  Federal  editors. 

Federal  papers  bitterly  attacked  Jefferson  for  the  Louisiana 
Purchase  on  the  ground  that  he  had  trampled  on  the  Consti- 
tution which  granted  him  no  such  power  to  acquire  additional 
territory:  some  of  the  most  radical  sheets  suggested  that  the 
States  where  the  Federals  were  in  the  majority  should  secede 
from  the  Union.  Jefferson's  Embargo  Policy  alienated  some  of 
his  own  party  organs  —  especially  in  Virginia  where  the  to- 
bacco-growers had  been  hard  hit  by  the  Embargo.  Jefferson 


106       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

suffered  the  same  personal  abuse  from  newspaper  editors  as  did 
Washington.  Federal  editors  spoke  of  him  as  "a  cold  thinking 
villain  whose  black  blood  always  runs  temperately  bad." 

EDITORIAL   CHANGES 

One  important  change  occurred  during  the  Period  of  the 
Early  Republic,  in  the  matter  of  editing  newspapers.  In  the 
Colonial  Period  the  editor  was  almost  invariably  a  practical 
printer  who  depended  upon  his  trade  for  a  living,  and  where 
this  was  not  possible,  he  supplemented  the  income  from  his 
press  by  ways  which  have  already  been  outlined  in  a  preceding 
chapter.  He  spoke  of  himself  in  his  columns  not  as  an  "  editor," 
but  as  a  printer,  undertaker,  author,  and  other  terms.  Such 
editorial  matter  as  appeared  in  his  columns  was  from  the  pen 
of  other  contributors.  During  the  Period  of  the  Early  Repub- 
lic, when  papers  were  founded  chiefly  for  political  purposes, 
the  editor  came  into  his  own.  j  He  was  either  a  printer  seeking 
an  office  or  he  was  a  politician  who  hired  a  printer  to  run  his 
paper.  In  the  Colonial  Period  the  pamphlet  was  the  medium 
for  editorial  expression,  but  with  the  change  just  mentioned, 
to  use  the  newspaper  for  political  purposes,  the  pamphlet  dis- 
appeared and  its  contents  were  printed  in  the  newspaper.  To- 
ward the  close  of  the  period  men  of  real  ability  were  hired  to 
edit  newspapers  in  which  they  had  no  financial  interest.  Com- 
munications from  other  pens  were  welcomed,  but  they  were  no 
longer  given  first  place  in  the  paper. 

PESTILENCE   AND   PRESS 

The  prevalence  of  yellow  fever  in  Philadelphia  during  sev- 
eral seasons  toward  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century,  and  an 
epidemic  of  a  malignant  fever  in  New  York  City  in  the  early 
part  of  the  nineteenth  century,  caused  several  papers  in  both 
cities  to  suspend  publication.  The  fever  devastation  in  Phila- 
delphia may  have  been  one  of  the  reasons  why  Freneau  failed 
to  resume  publication  of  The  National  Gazette.  For  fear  that 
it  might  return,  Joseph  Gales,  at  the  suggestion  of  his  wife,  who 
had  been  a  sufferer  from  the  fever  in  a  previous  year,  sold  his 
Independent  Gazetteer,  in  1799,  to  Samuel  Harrison  Smith,  who, 


PERIOD  OF  EARLY  REPUBLIC  107 

in  1800,  moved  the  journal  to  Washington,  as  has  been  men- 
tioned elsewhere  in  this  book,  and  gave  it  the  name  of  The 
National  Intelligencer.  Gales  then  went  to  Raleigh,  North  Caro- 
lina, where  he  started  another  paper,  The  Raleigh  Register,  a 
name  which  suggested  itself  from  his  first-born  newspaper  ven- 
ture, The  Sheffield  Register,  of  England.  After  the  malignant 
fever  had  attacked  New  York  City  in  1803,  The  Evening  Post 
of  that  city  pledged  itself  "to  pursue  the  discussion  of  the  origin 
of  the  late  pestilence  to  a  regular  and  satisfactory  close."  Wil- 
liam Coleman,  the  editor  of  that  paper,  had  evidently  jseen  a 
vision  that  a  newspaper  might  do  something  more  than  merely 
print  the  news  of  political  squabbles. 

NEWSPAPERS   DISINFECTED 

At  times  when  epidemics  similar  to  those  just  named  in  the 
preceding  paragraph  were  appearing  in  the  larger  cities,  the 
publishers  of  newspapers  disinfected  their  sheets  before  deliv- 
ering them  to  newsboys  and  post-riders.  Frequently,  in  order 
that  the  sheets  might  not  be  carriers  of  disease,  they  were  put 
into  stoves  and  thoroughly  smoked  before  being  wrapped  for 
delivery.  In  the  South,  where  yellow  fever  often  spread  very 
rapidly,  special  stoves,  built  of  sheet  iron,  were  designed  for 
this  purpose  and  used  tobacco  as  fuel,  but  the  process  was  slow, 
as  only  one  sheet  "smoked"  at  a  time.  The  plan  of  "smoking" 
by  wholesale  from  resinous  woods  was  probably  more  commonly 
employed  in  the  North  than  in  other  sections  of  the  country  be- 
cause of  the  great  infection  feared  from  smallpox.  The  academic 
and  pedantic  newspaper  critics,  who,  like  the  poor,  have  been 
ever  present,  used  to  assert  at  such  times  that  a  publisher  would 
perform  a  much  more  useful  service  for  the  public  if  he  would 
pay  more  attention  to  disinfecting  the  contents  of  his  papers 
and  less  to  disinfecting  the  sheets  themselves.  The  latter,  so  the 
critics  asserted,  could  be  done  when  necessary  by  the  reader  in 
his  own  home. 

FREEDOM   OF   PRESS  X 

For  some  unaccountable  reason  the  American  colonies,  after 
they  established  their  independence  and  had  drawn  up  their 


108       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Constitution,  did  not  make  provision  for  the  freedom  of  the 
press.  Each  colony,  however,  as  it  drew  its  State  Constitution, 
passed  some  resolution  to  the  effect  that  the  press  being  essen- 
tial to  State  freedom  ought  to  be  inviolably  preserved.  As  new 
States  and  Territories  drew  their  own  constitutions,  they  incor- 
porated some  similar  resolution  to  protect  the  press  from  the 
censorship  to  which  it  had  been  subjected  during  the  colonial 
period.  Even  the  first  Congress  saw  the  mistake  of  its  omission 
and  passed  an  Amendment  that  Congress  shall  make  no  law 
abolishing  the  freedom  of  speech  or  of  the  press.  In  spite  of  this 
constitutional  guarantee,  the  Alien-Sedition  Laws  were  passed. 

HILDRETH  ON  PRESS  OF  PERIOD 

Hildreth,  in  speaking  of  the  influence  of  the  press  upon 
American  politics  in  1812,  thus  explains  the  rise  of  this  period 
of  black  journalism:  "The  demand  for  printers  and  editors, 
especially  in  the  middle  states  could  not  be  supplied  from  do- 
mestic sources  and  as  many  of  these  political  exiles  had  been 
connected  with  the  press  at  home,  many  of  them  having  been 
driven  into  exile  in  consequence  of  publications  prosecuted  by 
the  Government  as  libelous  and  seditious,  they  had  adopted  the 
same  calling  in  America." 

LOCATION  OF  LEADING  PAPERS 

According  to  the  census  of  1800  there  were  in  the  United 
States  only  eleven  cities  or  towns  which  had  a  population  of  over 
five  thousand.  Of  these,  only  two,  Philadelphia  (70,287)  and 
New  York  (60,489),  had  more  than  fifty  thousand:  three,  Balti- 
more, Boston,  and  Charleston,  had  between  twenty  and  thirty 
thousand:  three,  Providence,  Savannah,  and  Norfolk,  had  be- 
tween five  and  ten  thousand:  just  over  the  five  thousand  limit 
were  Portsmouth,  New  Hampshire,  Albany,  New  York,  and 
Richmond,  Virginia.  As  the  total  population,  as  given  in  the 
census,  was  about  five  million,  three  hundred  thousand,  the  city 
population,  therefore,  constituted  only  about  five  per  cent. 
Newspapers  had  greatly  increased  in  number  since  1783,  but 
they  were  still  largely  agricultural,  except  in  the  eleven  cities 
just  mentioned.  The  temporary  location  of  the  seat  of  the  Gov- 


PERIOD  OF  EARLY  REPUBLIC  109 

ernment  at  Philadelphia  had  given  that  city  a  most  influential 
place  in  journalism.  Its  papers  were  not  only  the  largest  in  cir- 
culation, but  they  had  the  widest  distribution  and  were  the  most 
frequently  quoted.  When  the  Government  removed  to  Wash- 
ington this  newspaper  preeminence  went  from  Philadelphia  to 
New  York.  Already  the  latter  had  made  itself  felt  in  a  political 
way,  and  its  newspapers,  especially  its  dailies,  took  first  place  not 
only  in  local,  but  also  in  national,  influence.  The  political  battle 
between  Alexander  Hamilton  and  Aaron  Burr  assisted  materially 
in  giving  an  impetus  to  New  York  journalism. 

MASSACHUSETTS   STAMP   ACT  OF   1785 

During  the  Period  of  the  Early  Republic  an  attempt  to  put  a 
stamp  tax  on  newspapers  was  made  in  Massachusetts.  That 
State,  on  March  18,  1785,  passed  an  act  imposing  duties  on 
licensed  vellum,  parchment  and  paper  including  "for  every 
newspaper  two-thirds  of  a  penny."  Nothing  could  have  aroused 
greater  opposition  on  the  part  of  the  press,  to  which  the  very 
name  of  " stamp  act"  was  most  offensive.  Whereas,  there  was 
no  evidence  that  the  State  Legislature  desired  in  any  way  to 
abridge  the  liberties  of  the  press,  the  newspapers  promptly  took 
that  point  of  view  and  filled  their  columns  with  tirades  against 
this  obnoxious  act. 

The  Massachusetts  Centinel  was  especially  bitter  in  its  de- 
nunciation. To  quote  from  the  issue  of  May  4,  1785:  — 

The  Stamp  Act,  passed  the  last  session  of  the  General  Court,  meets 
opposition  throughout  every  part  of  the  Commonwealth;  that  part 
laying  a  duty  on  newspapers  particularly  so.  The  cloven  foot  in  it 
appears  too  visible  to  escape  notice.  To  clog  the  currents  of  informa- 
tion, —  and  to  shackle  the  means  of  political  knowledge  and  necessary 
learning,  —  are  discordant  notes  to  the  general  ear.  But  its  danger 
is  not  the  whole  of  its  evil  consequences.  It  is  deemed  impolitic  and 
unequal,  —  impolitic,  as  it  will  encourage  our  sister  States  to  send 
their  papers  into  this  commonwealth  cheaper  than  they  can  possibly 
be  afforded  here,  to  the  ruin  of  a  set  of  artizans,  whose  exertions  in  the 
late  revolution  deserve  a  more  liberal  fate:  —  unequal,  as  the  revenue 
arising  from  newspapers  must  (while  but  a  mite  in  the  general  treasury) 
operate,  in  a  great  degree,  to  the  destruction  of  the  present  printers  of 
these  publications. 


110       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

The  Boston  Gazette  in  its  issue  for  April  18,  1785,  printed  the 
following  item :  — 

The  General  Court  in  their  last  Session  was  pleased  to  pass  an  Act, 
generally  called  the  STAMP  ACT,  a  Name  heretofore  held  in  an  ap- 
probious  light,  and  highly  disgustful  to  us. 

A  clause  in  said  Act  says,  "For  every  NEWS-PAPER,  two  thirds  of 
a  Penny." 

Should  the  Stamp  on  NEWS-PAPERS  take  place,  the  price  will  be 
enhanced  and  the  poor,  by  being  unable  to  take  the  same,  will  be  de- 
prived of  the  pleasure  of  affording  themselves  and  their  children  the 
advantages  attendant  on  the  perusal  of  this  vehicle  of  entertainment 
and  political  knowledge;  —  and  who  will  say,  it  will  not  be  a  disad- 
vantage to  the  State  in  general,  for  the  majority  of  the  inhabitants 
thereof  to  be  politically  ignorant? 

And  will  not  this  Stamp  on  NEWS-PAPERS,  if  held  in  force,  tend 
thereto? 

It  is  therefore  hoped  and  expected  by  many,  that  the  Honorable 
Members  of  the  General  Court,  in  their  next  Session  will  take  the  above 
mentioned  Clause  in  the  said  Act  into  mature  consideration  repeal  the 
same,  and  free  the  public  from  that  bar  to  political  wisdom. 

On  August  12,  1785,  under  a  Philadelphia  date-line,  was  pub- 
lished an  article  entitled  "A  Libel  Some  Will  Say."  From  it,  the 
following  paragraph  was  taken:  — 

Every  man  in  the  thirteen  states  from  New  Hampshire  to  Georgia, 
should  pour  out  incessant  execrations  on  the  devoted  heads  of  those 
miscreants  in  Massachusetts  who  machinated,  advised,  aided,  abetted, 
or  assisted  in  laying  sacriligious  hands  upon  that  most  invaluable  of  all 
blessings  —  THE  FREEDOM  OF  THE  PRESS  — that  palladium 
of  all  the  rights,  privileges,  and  immunities,  dear  or  sacred  to  any  body 
of  men  worthy  to  rank  above  the  brute  creation!  —  that  dispeller  of 
the  —  till  then  —  unpenetrable  clouds  which  overspread  the  world  for 
ages  anterior  to  the  auspicious  aera  of  its  discovery!  That  scourge  of 
tyrants  whether  monarch,  aristocrats,  or  demagogues. 

TAX   ON   ADVERTISING 

Because  of  the  unpopularity  of  this  act,  the  Massachusetts 
Legislature  repealed  it  on  July  2,  1785.  But  another  was  passed, 
putting  a  duty  on  advertisements  of  six  pence  on  each  insertion 4 
Some  of  the  Massachusetts  newspapers,  notably  The  Massa- 
chusetts Centinel,  were  willing  to  accept  this  substitute  on  the 
ground  that  it  was  no  infringement  of  the  liberty  of  the  press 


PERIOD  OF  EARLY  REPUBLIC  111 

and  that  it  "  contributed  thousands  to  the  exigencies  of  the 
State."  But  most  of  the  papers  continued  their  opposition  to  the 
measure.  The  Massachusetts  Spy  said  that  it  had  to  suspend 
publication  on  account  of  the  act.  Of  this  circumstance,  The 
American  Herald  of  Boston  in  its  issue  for  April  3,  1786,  said:  — 

The  Massachusetts  Spy  (which  it  is  acknowledged  has  been  very 
essential  to  this  Commonwealth  in  particular,  before,  at,  and  since 
the  late  Revolution)  is  now  languishing  with  a  dangerous  Wound,  given 
it  by  the  Legislature  of  Massachusetts  on  the  second  day  of  July  last. 
Humble  and  united  application  has  been  made  for  a  particular  kind  of 
Court  Plaister,  which  could  speedily  have  wrought  a  Cure;  but  as  that 
Power,  only,  which  gave  the  Wound,  could  apply  the  Remedy,  with 
effect,  it  could  not  be  obtained!  —  The  wound  grows  worse  daily  — 
mortification  has  taken  place,  and  in  all  probability  will  soon  prove 
fatal  to  the  existence  of  that  Old  Public  Servant  —  "Alas  Poor  SPY." 

MODERN  METHOD  TO  EVADE  LAW 

While  the  Massachusetts  papers  of  this  period  could  scarcely 
have  afforded  the  services  of  modern  corporation  lawyers,  some 
of  them  knew  how  to  get  around  the  law  that  was  so  offensive  to 
them.  The  way  in  which  it  was  done  is  outlined  in  this  announce- 
ment from  The  Boston  Gazette:  — 

The  sixteenth  article  of  our  Bill  of  Rights  says  "The  Liberty  of  the 
Press  is  essential  to  the  security  of  Freedom  in  a  State:  It  ought  not 
therefore  to  be  restrained  in  this  commonwealth." 

While  the  papers  of  the  other  states  are  crowded  with  advertisements, 
(free  of  duty)  those  of  this  state  are  almost  destitute  thereof;  which 
justly  occasions  the  oppressed  printers  of  those  shackled  presses  to 
make  their  separate  complaints,  as  many  do,  owing  to  their  being  pro- 
hibited advertising  in  their  own  papers  their  own  Books  and  Station- 
ery without  incurring  a  penalty  therefor.  We,  for  the  same  reason  that 
our  brother  Typographers  use,  forbear  publishing  that  Bibles,  Testa- 
ments, Psalters,  Spelling-Books,  Primers,  Almanacks,  &c.  besides  Sta- 
tionery and  all  kinds  of  Blanks,  may  be  had  at  No.  42,  Cornhill. 

The  duty  on  advertisements  also  prevents  our  publishing  that  we 
have  lately  reprinted  an  excellent  moral  Discourse,  entitled,  "The 
Shortness  and  Afflictions  of  Human  Life  illustrated,"  for  the  price  of 
said  book  being  but  eight  pence,  it  will  take  away  the  profits  of  too 
many;  and  perhaps  encourage  government  to  continue  this  burthen. 


112       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

ADVERTISING   TAX  WITHDRAWN 

Such  methods  to  make  the  law  ineffectual  doubtless  had  much 
to  do  with  its  repeal  in  1788.  The  House  Committee  in  reporting 
on  the  act,  announced  that  the  imposition  on  the  newspapers  was 
not  worth  the  small  return  from  the  tax  (£250)  so  long  as  the 
papers  from  New  York,  New  Hampshire,  Rhode  Island,  and 
Connecticut  might  circulate  freely  in  Massachusetts.  Several  of 
the  papers  which  had  suspended  publication  on  account  of  the 
act  reappeared.  The  Massachusetts  Spy  in  resuming  publica- 
tion on  April  3,  1788,  offered  this  salutation  of  thankfulness:  — 

The  Printer  has  the  happiness  of  once  more  presenting  to  the  Pub- 
lick,  the  MASSACHUSETTS  SPY,  or  the  WORCESTER  GAZETTE, 
which  at  length  is  restored  to  its  Constitutional  Liberty,  (thanks  to  our 
present  Legislature),  after  a  suspension  of  two  years.  Heaven  grant 
that  the  FREEDOM  of  the  PRESS,  on  which  depends  the  FREEDOM 
of  the  PEOPLE,  may,  in  the  United  States,  ever  be  guarded  with  a 
watchful  eye,  and  defended  from  Shackles  of  every  form  and  shape, 
until  the  trump  of  the  celestial  messenger  shall  announce  the  final  dis- 
solution of  all  things. 

After  Massachusetts  had  repealed  the  act  which  taxed  news- 
paper advertising,  no  State,  because  of  the  odium  attached  to  a 
Stamp  Act,  attempted  to  impose  a  duty  upon  newspapers  until 
the  fifth  decade  of  the  next  century.  On  September  30,  1842,  an 
act  of  the  Virginia  Legislature  imposed  a  tax  on  newspapers 
which  amounted  to  the  subscription  price  for  each  paper. 

POSTAL  REGULATIONS   OF   PERIOD 

Newspapers  multiplied  so  rapidly  that  they  became  a  burden 
to  post-riders.  In  order  to  make  sure  that  copies  reached  sub- 
scribers, newspapers  were  forced  to  pay  the  carriers  on  the  post- 
roads  an  extra  allowance.  This  charge  meant  an  increase  in  the 
subscription  price.  Madison  "  vie  wed  with  alarm  this  news- 
paper tax"  as  he  called  it.  On  June  12,  1792,  he  wrote  Jeffer- 
son: "I  am  afraid  the  subscriptions  will  soon  be  withdrawn  from 
the  Philadelphia  papers  unless  some  step  be  speedily  taken  to 
prevent  it.  The  best  that  occurs  seems  to  be  to  advertise  that  the 
papers  will  not  be  put  into  the  mails,  but  sent,  as  heretofore,  to 


PERIOD  OF  EARLY  REPUBLIC  113 

all  who  shall  not  direct  them  to  be  put  into  the  mail.  Will  you 
hint  this  to  Freneau?"  Federal  postal  acts  of  1793  permitted 
every  printer  of  a  newspaper  to  send  one  copy  without  charge 
to  every  printer  of  a  newspaper  in  the  United  States.  Other 
provisions  permitted  newspapers  to  be  carried  in  separate  bags 
from  letters  at  a  fixed  rate  of  one  cent  for  a  distance  not  over  one 
hundred  miles.  Papers  going  farther  were  charged  a  cent  and 
one  half,  but  a  restriction  was  made  that  postage  on  a  single 
newspaper  in  a  state  where  it  was  published  should  not  exceed 
one  cent.  An  additional  act,  the  same  year,  insisted  that  news- 
papers should  be  dried  by  the  publisher  before  being  turned  over 
to  the  postmaster  for  transmission:  the  Postal  Department  ob- 
jected to  carrying  too  much  water  in  its  mail-bags.  No  distinction 
was  made  in  the  matter  of  weight  of  the  different  newspapers; 
whether  they  were  large  or  small  they  paid  the  same  price  per 
copy. 

READERS  BUT  NOT  BUYERS  OF  PAPERS 

During  this  period,  newspapers  when  sent  regularly  through 
the  mail  seemed  to  be  more  or  less  common  property  like  um- 
brellas left  in  the  hallways.  The  complaints  about  non-delivery 
of  papers  were  frequent.  Even  George  Washington  had  to  com- 
plain on  this  matter,  and  in  a  letter  to  a  Philadelphia  printer  who 
was  about  to  establish  a  paper  he  made  the  folio  whig  request: 
"It  has  so  happened,  that  my  Gazettes  from  Philadelphia, 
whether  from  inattention  at  the  Printing  or  Post  offices,  or  other 
causes,  come  very  irregularly  to  my  hands.  Let  me  pray  you 
therefore  to  address  those  you  send  me,  in  the  appearance  of  a 
letter  —  The  common  paper,  usually  applied,  will  do  equally 
well  for  the  cover.  —  It  has  sometimes  occurred  to  me,  that 
there  are  persons  who,  wishing  to  read  News  Papers  without 
being  at  the  expense  of  paying  for  them,  make  free  with  those 
which  are  sent  to  others;  under  the  garb  of  a  letter  it  is  not 
presumeable  this  liberty  would  be  taken." 

AN   ADDITIONAL   DUTY   OF   POST-RIDER 

The  post-rider  was  not  only  a  carrier  of  the  Gazettes  in  the 
early  days  of  the  Republic,  but  he  was  also  a  collector  of  sub- 


114       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

scriptions.  The  following  advertisement  of  the  post-rider  from 
Providence  to  Connecticut  is  taken  from  The  Gazette  of  the 
former  place  for  April  2,  1803:  — 

PAY  THE  POST,  THAT  HE  MAY  PAY  THE  PRINTER 

I  who  have  been  TWO  YEARS  at  most 

(Strange  as  't  may  seem)  a  RIDING  POST 

And  worn  my  poor  old  DOBBIN 'S  shoes  out 

With  riding  hard,  to  bring  the  news  out, 

And  made  wry  faces  at  the  storm, 

While  yet  the  news  was  moist  and  warm, 

That  you  might  read,  before  the  fire, 

Of  battles  fought,  and  sieges  dire, 

What  politician  now  is  vest, 

Who 's  dead,  and  who  is  married  next, 

And  such  like  entertaining  story, 

Which  I  have  always  laid  before  ye,  — 

Solicit,  my  friends,  the  amount 

Of  what  is  due  ON  OLD  ACCOUNT. 

ALBE  STONE. 

COMBINATION   OF   PUBLISHERS   TO   RAISE   PRICES 

In  1803  several  papers  in  New  York  City  made  an  attempt  to 
get  together  to  fix  prices.  The  New  York  Evening  Post,  in  its 
issue  for  December  1  of  that  year,  told  of  this  attempt  as  fol- 
lows :  — 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Publishers  of  the  following  Daily  Newspapers 
printed  in  the  City  of  New-York,  viz.  Daily  Advertiser,  Mercantile 
Advertiser,  Daily  Gazette,  American  Citizen,  Commercial  Advertiser,  and 
Evening  Post  held  at  Lovett's  Hotel  on  Saturday  5th  November,  1803 
it  was  unanimously  Resolved: 

That  the  sum  of  eight  dollars  per  annum,  at  present  paid  as  the 
price  on  Subscription  for  a  Daily  Paper,  is  inadequate  to  the  expences 
of  Paper,  Printing,  and  Publication:  and  that  the  same  be  increased 
to  Ten  Dollars  from  and  after  the  first  day  of  January  next. 

That  the  price  of  those  papers  which  are  issued  twice  a  week  for  the 
country,  shall,  from  and  after  the  first  day  of  January,  be  Four  Dollars 
per  annum. 

In  a  note  to  the  public  The  Evening  Post  gave  some  of  the 
reasons,  which  were  found  in  the  "rise  which  labor  and  every 
article  employed  in  the  printing  shop  had  experienced  since  the 
terms  of  the  subscriptions  were  last  fixed."  Printers'  wages  had 


PERIOD  OF  EARLY  REPUBLIC  115 

increased  from  six  dollars  to  eight  and  nine;  salaries  of  clerks 
and  collectors  had  risen  from  three  hundred  and  three  hundred 
and  fifty  to  four  hundred  and  five  hundred  dollars  a  year.  The 
item  of  paper,  in  quality  and  size,  amounted  in  its  blank  state 
to  more  than  one  half  of  the  proceeds  of  all  subscriptions.  Type 
had  risen  twenty-five  per  cent  and  all  other  materials  in  about 
the  same  proportion.  Attention  was  called  that  these  items 
including  that  of  labor  required  prompt  payment,  while  news- 
papers gave  more  extensive  credit  than  was  allowed  in  any  other 
business  —  "an  evil  sorely  felt  by  the  proprietors."  While  The 
Evening  Post  admitted  that  subscriptions  in  amount  had  quad- 
rupled, it  asserted  that  they  were  not  sufficient  to  support  a 
newspaper  establishment,  and  frequently  confessed  that  it  was 
the  advertisers  who  provided  the  paper  for  the  subscribers,  and 
went  so  far  as  to  say  that  without  a  very  extensive  advertising 
support,  a  publisher  of  a  newspaper  received  less  reward  for  his 
labor  than  the  humblest  mechanic.  While  the  subscription  rates 
were  scheduled  for  a  raise,  those  of  advertising  remained  the 
same  as  before. 

r  The  scheme  did  not  work  out  as  planned.  The  Evening  Post, 
in  a  column  and  a  half  editorial  in  its  issue  for  December  9, 
expressed  surprise  that  both  The  Mercantile  Advertiser  and  The 
New-York  Gazette  had  receded  from  the  project  which  they  had 
stood  pledged  to  support  and  that  The  Morning  Chronicle  had 
declined  to  come  into  the  measure,  not  because  the  price  of  sub- 
scriptions was  high  enough,  but  because,  being  the  youngest 
establishment  in  the  city,  it  was  not  prepared  to  encounter 
shock  of  the  loss  of  subscribers.  The  same  editorial  in  The  Post 
denied  that  there  had  been  any  improper  combination  among 
the  printers.  The  previous  price  of  The  Evening  Post  had  been 
eight  dollars  per  year  to  city  subscribers  and  nine  dollars  to 
country  subscribers. 

PARTY   SUPPORT  OF   PRESS 

During  the  era  of  the  party  organ,  not  only  the  politicians 
but  also  the  voters  were  expected  to  subscribe  to  the  paper 
which  supported  partisan  principles,  regardless  of  the  represen- 
tative merit  of  such  publications.  Occasionally,  a  paper  of  the 


116       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

rival  party  became  so  energetic  in  the  matter  of  gathering 
news  or  in  its  ability  to  express  more  forcibly  its  editorial  opin- 
ions that  it  secured  circulation  among  all  parties.  Such  a  paper 
was  The  Phoenix,  started  in  Providence,  Rhode  Island,  on  May 
11,  1802,  to  help  the  organization  of  the  Republican  Party,  then 
under  the  leadership  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  and  to  assist  the  polit- 
ical activities  of  the  Honorable  Theodore  Foster,  then  United 
States  Senator  from  Rhode  Island.  This  paper  became  so  popu- 
lar with  the  voters  of  Providence  that  The  Gazette  published  a 
complaint  in  its  columns  that  The  Phoenix  had  not  only  the 
largest  circulation,  but  also  the  largest  advertising  patronage  in 
spite  of  the  fact  that  it  was  a  Republican  paper  in  a  Federal 
town. 


NEWSPAPEK  DIVISION   ALONG   PARTY  LINES 

In  1810  Isaiah  Thomas  published,  in  his  "  History  of  Print- 
ing," a  list  of  the  American  newspapers.  His  list  of  three  hun- 
dred and  sixty-six  papers  —  while  not  complete  —  showed 
fairly  well  the  relative  distribution  of  papers  along  party  lines. 
Of  the  twelve  in  New  Hampshire,  eight  were  Federal  and  two, 
Republican;  of  the  thirty-two  in  Massachusetts,  twenty  were 
Federal  and  eleven,  Republican;  of  the  seven  in  Rhode  Island, 
four  were  Federal  and  three,  Republican;  of  the  twelve  in  Con- 
necticut, ten  were  Federal  and  one,  Republican;  of  the  fifteen  in 
Vermont,  nine  were  Federal  and  six,  Republican;  of  the  sixty- 
seven  in  New  York,  twenty-nine  were  Federal  and  twenty- 
seven,  Republican;  of  the  eight  in  New  Jersey,  three  were 
Federal  and  five,  Republican;  of  the  seventy-three  in  Pennsylva- 
nia, thirty-four  were  Federal  and  twenty-nine,  Republican;  of  the 
three  in  Delaware,  two  were  Republican;  of  the  twenty-one  in 
Maryland,  nine  were  Federal  and  eleven,  Republican  ;  of  the  six 
papers  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  two  were  Federal  and  three, 
Republican;  of  the  twenty-three  in  Virginia,  seven  were  Fed- 
eral and  fifteen,  Republican;  of  the  ten  in  North  Carolina,  five 
were  Federal  and  three,  Republican;  of  the  ten  in  South  Caro- 
lina, four  were  Federal  and  four,  Republican;  of  the  thirteen 
in  Georgia,  three  were  Federal  and  seven,  Republican;  of  the 
seventeen  in  Kentucky,  two  were  Federal  and  fourteen,  Re- 


PERIOD  OF  EARLY  REPUBLIC  117 

publican;  of  the  six  in  Tennessee,  one  was  Federal  and  five 
were  Republican ;  of  the  fourteen  in  Ohio,  three  were  Federal  and 
eight,  Republican;  of  the  four  in  Mississippi,  one  was  Federal 
and  one,  Republican;  of  the  ten  in  Territory  of  Orleans,  five 
were  Federal  and  one  was  Republican.  Of  the  single  papers  in 
Michigan,  Indiana,  and  Louisiana,  Thomas  did  not  give  the 
party  affiliation.  Of  the  scattering  neutral  papers,  most  of  them 
were  agricultural  in  character.  The  figures  already  given  show 
how  closely  the  newspapers  were  divided  on  party  lines,  for 
politics  and  press  were  in  close  partnership.  Often  the  party 
in  control  sought  support  through  the  advertising  at  its  dis- 
posal; at  other  times  it  held  before  the  editor  the  promise  of 
political  office.  This  partnership  reached  its  closest  affiliation 
in  the  next  period. 


CHAPTER   IX 
FIRST  DAILIES  AND  EARLY  PARTY  ORGANS 

As  the  cities  increased  in  size  and  became  more  commercial 
centers,  the  newspapers  became  more  valuable  as  advertising 
mediums.  The  publishers  soon  became  rivals  in  the  matter  of 
publishing  the  news  of  the  stores  and  began  to  issue  their  papers 
more  frequently,  —  first,  semi-weekly,  and  later,  tri-weekly. 
From  this  it  was  only  a  step  to  bring  out  a  paper  every  day  in 
the  week  save  Sunday. 

BEGINNINGS   OF  DAILY  JOURNALISM 

The  first  daily  newspaper  appeared  in  Philadelphia  on  Tues- 
day, September  21,  1784;  it  was  entitled  The  Pennsylvania 
Packet  and  Daily  Advertiser  and  was  published  by  John  Dunlap 
and  David  C.  Claypoole.  From  1791  to  1793  Dunlap  was  the 
sole  publisher,  but  in  the  latter  year  Claypoole  again  became  a 
partner  until  December,  1795,  when  Dunlap  withdrew.  From 
that  time  it  was  published  by  David  C.  and  Septimus  Clay- 
poole, under  the  title  of  Claypoole1  s  American  Daily  Advertiser, 
until  the  death  of  Septimus  in  1798.  When,  on  September  30, 
1800,  it  was  sold  to  Zachariah  Poulson,  Jr.,  it  became  Paulson's 
American  General  Advertiser.  On  December  30,  1839,  the  paper 
was  merged  into  the  present  North  American  of  Philadelphia. 
Such,  in  brief,  was  the  history  of  the  first  daily  paperxin  this 
country. 

CONTENTS   OF   FIRST  DAILY   PAPER 

Because  The  Pennsylvania  Packet  and  Daily  Advertiser  was  the 
beginning  of  daily  journalism  in  America,  a  word  or  two  may 
not  be  out  of  place  in  this  connection  about  the  contents  of  the 
first  issue.  It  was  a  four-page  sheet  of  four  columns  to  the  page 
and  sold  for  four  pence  per  copy.  The  first  page  and  the  last 
were  filled  entirely  with  advertisements.  The  third  page  con- 


FIRST  DAILIES  AND  EARLY  PARTY  ORGANS    119 

sisted  half  of  advertisements  and  half  of  text.  Of  the  two  col- 
umns devoted  to  news,  fully  one  half  of  the  column  related  to 
information  about  vessels  dismasted.  Of  the  three  fourths  of  the 
column  in  which  the  news  of  Philadelphia  was  given,  fully  one 
half  came  from  the  naval  office  and  told  about  the  entries  at  the 
Port  of  Philadelphia  —  inward  and  outward.  There  was  a  little 
over  a  stick  of  type  about  the  arrival  of  vessels  at  Newburyport, 
Massachusetts;  three  sticks  or  thereabouts  told  the  news  of  New 
York.  The  only  page  which  did  not  contain  an  advertisement 
was  the  second;  of  this  "The  Errors  of  the  Press,"  an  essay  re- 
printed from  The  London  Public  Advertiser,  occupied  a  column 
and  a  half;  the  rest  of  the  page  contained  some  intelligence 
based  upon  European  papers  just  received  at  the  printing-office. 
The  paper  was  simply  a  development  of  a  tri-weekly  sheet  of  the 
same  name,  save  in  the  place  of  General  was  the  word  Daily  in 
the  title.  The  tri-weekly,  "  Published  on  Tuesdays,  Thursdays 
and  Saturdays  by  David  C.  Claypoole,"  had  sold  for  six  pence  a 
copy. 

SECOND   DAILY  IN  AMEKICA 

The  second  daily  in  the  United  States  was  the  outgrowth  of 
the  second  paper  to  be  established  in  Charleston  after  the  evacu- 
ation of  that  city  by  the  British  at  tn~e  close  ol  the  Revolution. 
At  the  start  the  precursor  was  called  The  South  Carolina  Gazette 
and  General  Advertiser  and  appeared  from  two  to  four  times  each 
week,  but  not  regularly  on  the  same  days  of  the  week.  Its  edi- 
tor and  publisher  was  John  Miller,  an  English  publisher  who 
had  been  forced  to  come  to  this  country  because  of  his  "defy- 
ing and  exposing  the  wickedness  and  the  folly  of  the  cursed 
American  war."  Upon  reaching  Philadelphia  and  explaining 
the  circumstances  under  which  he  had  been  forced  to  leave  Eng- 
land, he  was  invited  by  the  South  Carolina  delegation,  then  in 
attendance  at  the  Continental  Congress,  to  come  to  Charleston 
and  establish  a  newspaper  in  that  city  —  an  invitation  which 
he  accepted.  From  irregular  publication  on  several  days  of  the 
week  it  was  only  a  step  to  bringing  the  paper  out  daily.  This 
was  done  on  Wednesday,  December  1,  1784.  Papers  in  London 
frequently  referred  to  Miller  as  "Printer  to  the  States  of 


120       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

America."  This  error  is  doubtless  due  to  the  fact  that  Miller 
had  been  made,  immediately  upon  his  arrival  in  Charleston, 
"Printer  to  the  State."  He  continued  to  publish  his  daily  until 
it  was  purchased  a  year  or  two  later  by  The  State  Gazette  of 
South  Carolina,  when  it  was  merged  with  that  paper.  Miller 
then  removed  to  Pendleton,  South  Carolina,  where  he  published 
a  weekly,  The  Merger,  until  his  death  in  1809. 

NEW  YORK  HAS  NEXT  DAILY 

The  third  daily  paper  in  the  United  States  was  The  New  York 
Daily  Advertiser,  first  published  on  Thursday,  March  1,  1785, 
by  Francis  Childs.  Not  being  the  outgrowth  of  another  paper, 
it  was,  at  least  in  its  early  days,  rather  poorly  supported  by 
advertisers:  yet  its  publisher  made  an  earnest  attempt  to  se- 
cure such  business  and  offered  to  insert  advertisements  at  three 
shillings  each.  It  had  no  sooner  been  established  than  it  became 
engaged  in  a  quarrel  with  Holt's  New  York  Journal.  Colonel 
E.  Oswald,  of  the  latter  paper,  asserted  that  the  daily  had  been 
started  simply  to  injure  Widow  Holt.  Philip  Freneau  contrib- 
uted to  the  columns  of  The  Daily  Advertiser,  but  was  never  its 
editor,  simply  a  writer  of  political  articles.  The  Advertiser  was 
the  special  organ  of  the  Hartford  Convention;  in  fact,  its  editor, 
Theodore  D wight,  was  secretary  of  the  Convention.  In  its  col- 
umns he  told  rather  fully  the  story  of  New  England's  opposition 
to  the  War  of  1812.  Although  the  first  daily  paper  in  New  York, 
it  did  not  lead  in  circulation  other  dailies  which  were  later  es- 
tablished —  due,  doubtless,  to  its  political  beliefs.  By  1820  it 
was  credited  with  a  circulation  of  thirteen  hundred,  but  prob- 
ably it  had  less  than  that  amount.  It  finally  united  with  The 
Express,  then  a  morning,  but  later  changed  to  an  evening,  news- 
paper. 

FIRST  DAILY   OF   BOSTON 

Boston  did  not  have  a  daily  paper  until  October  6,  1796, 
when  The  Polar  Star  and  Boston  Daily  Advertiser  arose  on  the 
horizon.  Its  editor  was  John  Burk,  who  had  fled  from  Ireland 
where  he  had  become  involved  in  trouble  on  account  of  his  con- 
nection with  a  rebellious  band  called  the  " United  Irishmen." 


FIRST  DAILIES  AND  EARLY  PARTY  ORGANS    121 

In  some  of  his  early  numbers  Burk  published  an  account  of  his 
trial  before  the  University  of  Dublin  on  the  charge  of  Deism 
and  Rebellionism.  Shortly  after,  he  addressed  an  advice  "to 
the  editors  of  the  several  newspapers  in  Boston"  about  the 
" vices  that  existed  in  newspaper  establishments."  In  it  he 
said,  "The  period  of  election  is  ushered  in  by  bickerings,  by 
personalities,  by  squabbles  and  scurrilities,  by  feuds,  by  heart- 
burnings and  heart-scaldings,  by  animosity,  by  contentions  and 
quarrels,  which  reflect  a  disgrace  on  the  amiable  character  of 
Liberty,  and  are  unworthy  the  literary  advocates  of  a  free  peo- 
ple." Because  of  these  and  other  criticisms,  Burk  became  un- 
popular and  was  forced  to  suspend  his  paper  early  in  1797. 
Leaving  Boston,  Burk  came  to  New  York,  where  he  helped  The 
Time  Piece,  established  by  Philip  Freneau,  March  13,  1797,  to 
keep  going  in  a  political  way.  Because  of  his  political  editorials 
in  this  paper,  he  was  one  of  those  editors  arrested  for  publish- 
ing a  libel  contrary  to  the  provisions  of  the  Sedition  Law. 

FIRST  APPEARANCE   OF   ' '  THE   FEDERALIST  *  * 

In  promoting  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States  The  Independent  Journal,  established  November  17,  1783, 
in  New  York  City,  rendered  a  distinct  service  by  printing  a 
collection  of  essays  advocating  that  measure  under  the  general 
caption  "The  Federalist."  Of  these  essays,  eighty-five  in  num- 
ber, the  first  seventy-six  appeared  in  The  Journal,  starting  on 
October  27,  1787,  and  stopping  on  April  2,  1788.  Signed  by 
"Publius,"  they  were  addressed  to  the  voters  of  New  York,  and 
urged  the  necessity  of  supporting  the  proposed  Constitution. 
Alexander  Hamilton,  John  Jay,  and  James  Madison  were  the 
real  authors  of  these  semi-editorial  essays,  though  all  wrote  over 
the  common  name  of  "Publius."  The  series  was  copied  in  many 
of  the  other  newspapers  and  had  much  to  do  with  the  adoption 
of  the  Constitution,  not  only  by  New  York,  but  also  by  other 
States.  No  other  one  thing  during  the  early  days  of  the  Repub- 
lic showed  more  the  power  of  the  controversial  press  than  the 
appearance  of  "The  Federalist."  The  essays  have  since  been 
reprinted  in  book  form  and  are  still  studied  by  the  students  of 
political  history.  In  1788  The  Independent  Journal  became  The 


122       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

New  York  Daily  Gazette:  it  was  absorbed  by  The  New  York 
Journal  of  Commerce  in  1840. 


HAMILTON   AND   JEFFERSON   AS  JOURNALISTS 

Alexander  Hamilton  and  Thomas  Jefferson,  though  usVially 
classified  in  histories  as  statesmen,  were  also  journalists  by 
proxies.  Their  names  are  associated  with  possibly  the  two  best 
illustrations  of  the  party  press  and  the  personal  organs  —  The 
Gazette  of  the  United  States  and  The  National  Gazette.  The  first  of 
these,  edited  by  John  Fenno,  was  the  leader  of  the  Federal  press 
and  was  the  political  organ  of  Hamilton;  the  second,  edited  by 
Philip  Freneau,  was  the  leader  of  the  Republican  press  and  was 
the  personal  organ  of  Jefferson.  Both  editors  were  employed  by 
the  Government:  Fenno  was  "the  printer"  to  the  Treasury 
Department  at  a  salary  of  twenty-five  hundred  dollars  a  year; 
Freneau  held  a  "  clerkship  for  languages"  in  the  State  Depart- 
ment at  a  salary  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  a  year. 

ORGAN  OF  HAMILTON 

The  Gazette  of  the  United  Stales  was  the  older  publication,  being 
established  in  New  York  City  on  April  11,  1789,  when  that  city 
was  still  the  seat  of  the  Government.  As  soon  as  the  Govern- 
ment removed  to  Philadelphia,  in  1790,  The  Gazette  of  the  United 
States  followed  it  and  appeared  with  a  Philadelphia  imprint  on 
April  14,  1790.  Hamilton  was  thus  the  first  in  the  field  with  a 
personal  organ. 

ORGAN   OF  JEFFERSON 

Jefferson,  perceiving  that  The  Gazette  of  the  United  States  was, 
to  quote  his  own  words,  "a  paper  of  pure  Toryism,  disseminat- 
ing the  doctrine  of  monarchy,  aristocracy,  and  exclusion  of  the 
people,"  desired  a  paper  that  would  be  a  "Whig  vehicle  of  in- 
telligence," and  if  he  did  not  bring  Freneau  to  Philadelphia,  he 
at  least  sympathized  with  the  latter's  ambition  to  start  a  paper 
which  should  be  distinctly  Republican  in  policy.  The  Gazette  of 
the  United  States  soon  had  a  rival  in  The  National  Gazette  which 
Freneau  established  in  Philadelphia  on  October  31,  1791.  From 
the  start  it  had  a  national  rather  than  a  local  circulation  :  in  this 


FIRST  DAILIES  AND  EARLY  PARTY  ORGANS    123 

respect,  as  in  several  others,  it  followed  Jefferson's  plan.  Nat- 
urally The  National  Gazette,  being  a  party  and  personal  organ, 
opposed  Hamilton  and  most  of  the  things  for  which  he  stood. 
At  first,  Hamilton  let  Fenno  defend  the  attacks,  but  when  the 
latter,  in  The  Gazette  of  the  United  States,  began  to  call  the  edi- 
tor of  The  National  Gazette  a  "  blackguard,"  "  bedlamite,"  "faun- 
ing  parasite,"  etc.,  Freneau,  who  was  a  master  of  satirical  verse, 
replied  as  follows :  —  , 

Since  the  day  we  attempted  The  Nation's  Gazette 
Pomposo's  dull  printer  does  nothing  but  fret; 

Now  preaching, 

And  screeching, 

Then  nibbling 

And  scribbling, 

Remarking 

And  barking, 

Repining 

And  whining 

And  still  in  a  pet 
From  morning  till  night  with  The  Nation's  Gazette. 

Instead  of  whole  columns,  our  page  to  abuse, 
Your  readers  would  rather  be  treated  with  news; 

While  wars  are  a-brewing 

And  kingdom  's  undoing, 

While  monarchs  are  falling 

And  princesses  squalling, 

While  France  is  reforming 

And  Irishmen  storming  — 

In  a  glare  of  such  splendor,  what  nonsense  to  fret 
At  so  humble  a  thing  as  The  Nation's  Gazette! 

No  favours  we  ask'd  from  your  friends  in  the  east; 
On  your  wretched  soup  —  meagre  I  left  them  to  feast; 
So  many  base  lies  you  have  sent  them  in  print, 
That  scarcely  a  man  at  our  paper  will  squint: 

And  now  you  begin 

With  a  grunt  and  a  grin 

With  the  bray  of  an  ass, 

And  a  visage  of  brass. 

With  a  quill  in  your  hand,  and  a  lie  in  your  mouth 
To  play  the  same  trick  on  the  men  of  the  south. 

One  National  Paper,  you  think  is  enough 
To  flatter  and  lie,  to  pallaver  and  puff; 
To  preach  up  in  favor  of  monarchs  and  titles, 
And  garters  and  ribbons,  to  prey  on  our  vitals: 


124      HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Who  knows  but  our  Congress  will  give  it  in  fee, 
And  make  Mr.  Fenno  the  grand  patentee! 

Then  take  to  your  scrapers 

Other  national  papers  — 

No  rogue  shall  go  snacks 

And  the  newspaper  Tax 

Shall  be  puff' d  to  the  skies 

As  a  measure  most  wise  — 
So  a  spaniel,  when  master  is  angry  and  kicks  it, 
Sneaks  up  to  his  shoe  and  submissively  licks  it. 

From  this  time  on,  political  discussions  in  both  papers  became 
more  heated.  Fenno's  Gazette  of  the  United  States  stood  for  the 
Hamiltonian  doctrine  of  Federal  control,  modeled  after  that  of 
England:  Freneau's  National  Gazette  came  out  just  as  strongly 
for  the  Jeffersonian  principles  of  popular  control  dictated  by 
the  will  of  the  people.  Space  does  not  permit  a  discussion  of 
these  widely  divergent  principles  of  Jefferson  and  Hamilton  — 
principles  upon  which  two  great  political  parties  were  built. 

PRESS  BATTLE   OF   STATESMEN 

While  it  was  undoubtedly  true  that  both  Hamilton  and  Jef- 
ferson were  sincere  in  their  desire  to  avoid  an  open  quarrel,  it 
soon  became  evident  that  the  newspaper  articles  must  bring 
about  a  fight  to  a  finish.  The  break  came  when  Hamilton,  in- 
censed by  the  ironical  and  satirical  thrusts  of  Freneau,  published 
in  July,  1792,  the  following  letter  in  The  Gazette  of  the  United 
States:  — 

Mr.  Fenno: 

The  editor  of  The  National  Gazette  receives  a  salary  from  the  gov- 
ernment. Qucere:  Whether  this  salary  is  paid  for  translations  or  for 
publications  the  design  of  which  is  to  vilify  those  to  whom  the  voice  of 
the  people  has  committed  the  administration  of  our  public  affairs,  — 
to  oppose  the  measures  of  government  and  by  false  insinuation  to  dis- 
turb the  public  peace? 

In  common  life  it  is  thought  ungrateful  for  a  man  to  bite  the  hand 
that  puts  bread  in  his  mouth,  but  if  the  man  is  hired  to  do  it,  the  case 
is  altered. 

Freneau's  reply  may  be  found  in  the  following  item:  - 

Whether  a  man  who  receives  a  small  stipend  for  services  rendered  as 
French  Translator  to  the  Department  of  State  and  as  editor  of  a  free 


FIRST  DAILIES  AND  EARLY  PARTY  ORGANS    125 

newspaper  admits  into  his  publication  impartial  strictures  on  the 
proceedings  of  the  government,  is  not  more  likely  to  act  an  honest  and 
disinterested  part  toward  the  public  than  a  vile  sycophant  who,  ob- 
taining emoluments  from  the  government  far  more  lucrative  than  the 
salary  alluded  to,  [Fenno  was  printer  to  the  Treasury  Department  at 
a  salary  of  twenty-five  hundred  dollars  a  yeajj  finds  his  interest  in  at- 
tempting to  poison  the  mind  of  the  people  oy  propagating  and  dis- 
seminating principles  and  sentiments  utterly  subversive  of  the  true 
interest  of  the  country  and  by  flattering  and  recommending  every  and 
any  measure  of  government,  however  pernicious  and  destructive  its 
tendency  might  be  to  the  great  body  of  the  people? 

JEFFERSON   DEFENDS   FRENEAU 

The  fact  must  not  be  lost  sight  of  that  the  struggle  was  no 
longer  between  the  editors  of  the  two  Gazettes,  but  between  Ham- 
ilton and  Jefferson.  The  fight  became  so  open  that  Washington 
found  it  necessary  to  call  his  two  secretaries  together  and  ask 
them  to  cease  their  attacks  one  upon  the  other,  making  his 
appeal  that  the  interests  of  the  country  demanded  that  such 
attacks  as  were  appearing  in  the  two  papers  could  not  work  for 
the  good  of  the  Commonwealth.  Washington  even  asked  Jeffer- 
son to  dispense  with  the  services  of  Freneau.  This,  the  Secre- 
tary of  State  refused  to  do.  His  defense  may  be  quoted  at 
length  as  it  disproved  the  charge  so  often  made  that  Jefferson 
was  an  actual  contributor  to  The  National  Gazette:  — 

While  the  government  was  at  New  York  I  was  applied  to  on  be-half 
of  Freneau  to  know  if  there  was  any  place  within  my  department  to 
which  he  could  be  appointed.  I  answered  there  were  but  four  clerk- 
ships, all  of  which  I  found  full  and  continued  without  any  change. 
When  we  removed  to  Philadelphia,  Mr.  Pintard,  the  translating  clerk, 
did  not  choose  to  remove  with  us.  His  office  then  became  vacant.  I 
was  again  applied  to  there  for  Freneau  and  had  no  hesitation  to  prom- 
ise the  clerkship  to  him.  I  cannot  recollect  whether  it  was  at  the  same 
time  or  afterwards,  that  I  was  told  he  had  a  thought  of  setting  up  a 
paper  there.  But  whether  then  or  afterwards,  I  considered  it  a  circum- 
stance of  some  value,  as  it  might  enable  me  to  do  what  I  had  long 
wished  to  have  done,  that  is  to  have  the  material  parts  of  The  Leyden 
Gazette  brought  under  your  eye,  and  that  of  the  public,  in  order  to 
possess  yourself  and  them  of  a  juster  view  of  the  affairs  of  Europe,  than 
could  be  obtained  from  any  other  public  source.  This  I  had  ineffec- 
tually attempted  through  the  press  of  Mr.  Fenno,  while  in  New  York, 
selecting  and  translating  passages  myself  at  first,  then  having  it  done 


126       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

by  Mr.  Pintard,  the  translating  clerk,  but  they  found  their  way  too 
slowly  into  Fenno's  paper.  Mr.  Bache  essayed  it  for  me  in  Philadelphia, 
but  his  being  a  daily  paper  did  not  circulate  sufficiently  in  other  states. 
He  even  tried,  at  my  request,  the  plan  of  a  weekly  paper  of  recapitu- 
lation from  his  daily  paper,  on  hopes  it  might  go  into  the  other  states, 
but  in  this,  too,  we  failed.  Freneau,  as  translating  clerk  and  the  printer 
of  a  periodical  paper  likely  to  circulate  through  the  states  (uniting  in 
one  person  the  parts  of  Pintard  and  Fenno)  revived  my  hopes  that 
they  could  at  length  be  effected.  On  the  establishment  of  his  paper, 
therefore,  I  furnished  him  with  The  Leyden  Gazettes  with  an  expression 
of  my  wish  that  he  could  always  translate  and  publish  the  material  in- 
telligence they  contained,  and  have  continued  to  furnish  them  from 
time  to  tune  as  regularly  as  I  have  received  them.  But  as  to  any  other 
direction  or  any  indication  of  my  wish  how  his  press  should  be  con- 
ducted, what  sort  of  intelligence  he  should  give,  what  essays  encour- 
age, I  can  protest  in  the  presence  of  Heaven  that  I  never  did  by  myself 
or  any  other,  or  indirectly  say  a  syllable  nor  attempt  any  kind  of  in- 
fluence. I  can  further  protest  in  the  same  awful  presence,  that  I  never 
did  by  myself  or  any  other,  directly  or  indirectly  write,  dictate,  or  pro- 
cure any  one  sentence  or  sentiment  to  be  inserted  in  his  or  any  other 
gazette,  to  which  my  name  was  not  affixed  or  that  of  my  office.  I  surely 
need  not  except  here  a  thing  so  foreign  to  the  present  subject  as  a  little 
paragraph  about  our  Algerian  captives,  which  I  once  put  into  Fre- 
neau's  paper. 

Freneau's  proposition  to  publish  a  paper  having  been  about  the 
time  that  the  writings  of  Publicola  and  the  discourses  of  Davilla  had  a 
good  deal  excited  the  public  attention,  I  took  for  granted  from  Fre- 
neau's character,  which  had  been  marked  as  that  of  a  good  Whig,  that 
he  would  give  free  place  to  pieces  written  against  the  aristocratical  and 
monarchical  principles  these  papers  had  inculcated.  This  having  been 
in  my  mind,  it  is  likely  enough  I  may  have  expressed  it  in  conversation 
with  others,  though  I  do  not  recollect  that  I  did.  To  Freneau  I  think  I 
could  not,  because  I  still  had  seen  him  but  once  and  that  was  at  a  pub- 
lic table,  at  breakfast  at  Mrs.  Elsworth's,  as  I  passed  through  New 
York  the  last  year.  And  I  can  safely  declare  that  my  expectations 
looked  only  to  the  chastisement  of  the  aristocratical  and  monarchical 
writings,  and  not  to  any  criticism  on  the  proceedings  of  government. 
Colonel  Hamilton  can  see  no  motive  for  any  appointment  but  that  of 
making  a  convenient  partizan.  But  you,  sir,  who  have  received  from 
me  recommendations  of  a  Rittenhouse,  Barlow,  Paine,  will  believe  that 
talents  and  science  are  sufficient  motives  with  me  in  appointments  to 
which  they  are  fitted,  and  that  Freneau  as  a  man  of  genius,  might  find 
a  preference  in  my  eye  to  be  a  translating  clerk  and  make  a  good  title 
to  the  little  aids  I  could  give  him  as  the  editor  of  a  Gazette  by  procuring 
subscriptions  to  his  paper  as  I  did  some  before  it  appeared,  and  as  I 
have  done  with  pleasure  for  other  men  of  genius.  Col.  Hamilton,  alias 


FIRST  DAILIES  AND  EARLY  PARTY  ORGANS    127 

"Plain  Facts,"  says  that  Freneau's  salary  began  before  he  resided  in 
Philadelphia.  I  do  not  know  what  quibble  he  may  have  in  reserve  on 
the  word  "residence."  He  may  mean  to  include  under  that  idea  the 
removal  of  his  family;  for  I  believe  he  removed  himself  before  his  fam- 
ily did  to  Philadelphia.  But  no  act  of  mine  gave  commencement  to  his 
salary  before  he  so  far  took  up  his  abode  in  Philadelphia  as  to  be  suffi- 
ciently in  readiness  for  his  duties  of  his  place.  As  to  the  merits  or  de- 
merits of  his  paper  they  certainly  concern  me  not.  He  and  Fenno  are 
rivals  for  the  public  favor.  The  one  courts  them  by  flattery,  the  other 
by  censure,  and  I  believe  it  will  be  admitted  that  the  one  has  been  as 
servile  as  the  other  severe.  No  government  ought  to  be  without  cen- 
sors; and  where  the  press  is  free,  no  one  ever  will. 

FIGHT  OF   FRENEAU   FOR   EDITORIAL   FREEDOM  J 

Freneau  was  extremely  bitter  against  any  secrecy  on  the  part 
of  national  legislation.  Taking  as  its  target  the  act  of  the  Sen- 
ate in  holding  its  sessions  behind  closed  doors,  The  National 
Gazette  fired  the  following  shot  in  an  editorial  in  February, 
1792:  — 

A  motion  for  opening  the  doors  of  the  senate  chamber  has  again  been 
lost  by  a  considerable  majority  —  in  defiance  of  instruction,  in  defiance 
of  your  opinion,  in  defiance  of  every  principle  which  gives  security  to 
free  men.  What  means  this  conduct?  Which  expression  does  it  carry 
strongest  with  it,  contempt  for  you  or  tyranny?  Are  you  freemen  who 
ought  to  know  the  individual  conduct  of  your  legislators,  or  are  you 
an  inferior  order  of  beings  incapable  of  comprehending  the  sublimity 
of  senatorial  functions,  and  unworthy  to  be  entrusted  with  their  opin- 
ions? How  are  you  to  know  the  just  from  the  unjust  steward  when  they 
are  covered  with  the  mantle  of  concealment?  Can  there  be  any  ques- 
tion of  legislative  import  which  freemen  should  not  be  acquainted  with  ? 
What  are  you  to  expect  when  stewards  of  your  household  refuse  to  give 
account  of  their  stewardship?  Secrecy  is  necessary  to  design  and  a 
masque  to  treachery;  honesty  shrinks  not  from  the  public  eye. 

The  Peers  of  America  disdain  to  be  seen  by  vulgar  eyes,  the  music  of 
their  voices  is  harmony  only  for  themselves  and  must  not  vibrate  in 
the  ravished  ear  of  an  ungrateful  and  unworthy  multitude.  Is  there  any 
congeniality  excepting  in  the  administration,  between  the  government 
of  Great  Britain  and  the  government  of  the  United  States?  The  Senate 
supposes  there  is,  and  usurps  the  secret  privileges  of  the  House  of  Lords. 
Remember,  my  fellow  citizens,  that  you  are  still  freemen;  let  it  be  im- 
pressed upon  your  minds  that  you  depend  not  upon  your  representa- 
tives but  that  they  depend  upon  you,  and  let  this  truth  be  ever  present 
to  you,  that  secrecy  in  your  representatives  is  a  worm  which  will  prey 
and  fatten  upon  the  vitals  of  your  liberty. 


128       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

But  for  the  attacks  of  Freneau  the  Senate  might  possibly  be 
still  holding  its  sessions  behind  locked  doors. 

END   OF   BOTH   GAZETTES 

In  spite  of  the  fact  that  Freneau  published  at  the  end  of  the 
first  six  months  a  most  flattering  notice  about  the  success  of  The 
National  Gazette,  the  paper  on  October  26,  1793,  brought  out  its 
last  issue  and  published  the  following  notice :  — 

With  the  present  number  (208)  conclude  the  second  volume  and 
second  year's  publication  of  The  National  Gazette.  Having  just  im- 
ported a  considerable  quantity  of  new  and  elegant  type  from  Europe, 
it  is  the  editor's  intention  to  resume  the  publication  in  a  short  time  — • 
at  the  opening  of  the  next  Congress. 

Please  send  in  subscriptions. 

Printers  of  newspapers  may  no  longer  send  in  exchange  until  further 
notice. 

This  notice  left  a  loophole  so  that  Freneau  might  resume  pub- 
lication of  his  Gazette  in  case  he  could  raise  sufficient  funds  — 
something  he  was  evidently  unable  to  do.  The  fact  that  the 
yellow  fever  plague  broke  out  in  Philadelphia  this  same  year 
may  have  had  something  to  do  with  the  death  of  The  Gazette. 
One  other  thing  may  have  been  a  factor  in  the  decision :  Jeffer- 
son at  this  time  resigned  his  office  of  Secretary  of  State  and 
automatically  Freneau  ceased  to  be  the  official  translator  of  the 
Government. 

Freneau's  paper  led  all  the  organs  of  the  same  political  faith. 
Seldom  during  these  years  did  a  Republican  paper  get  out  an 
issue  in  which  there  was  not  at  least  one  quotation  from  The 
National  Gazette. 

The  Gazette  of  the  United  States  continued  to  be  the  Federal 
organ  and  was  bitterly  opposed  to  the  attempt  of  France  to  in- 
volve the  United  States  in  war.  Fenno  remained  editor  of  the 
paper  until  his  death  in  1798  when  he  was  succeeded  by  his  son, 
John  Ward  Fenno.  The  paper  later  became  The  United  States 
Gazette  and  was  finally  consolidated  with  The  Philadelphia  North 
American  in  1847. 


FIRST  DAILIES  AND  EARLY  PARTY  ORGANS     129 

POLITICAL   LEADER   OF   PRESS   IN   NEW   ENGLAND 

Of  the  early  political  papers  of  the  period,  the  most  interest- 
ing and  also  the  most  conservative  was  unquestionably  The 
Massachusetts  Centind  and  The  Republican  Journal  founded  on 
March  24,  1784,  by  Benjamin  Russell.  In  the  first  number  he 
printed  the  following  conditions  under  which  he  hoped  to  bring 
out  his  paper:  — 

(1).  This  paper  shall  be  printed  with  a  legible  type,  on  good  paper, 
to  contain  four  quarto  pages,  demi.  (2).  The  price  of  this  paper  (will) 
be  Twelve  Shillings,  the  year,  one  quarter  to  be  paid  on  subscribing.  If 
agreeable  to  the  custom  in  the  cities  of  London,  New- York  and  Phila- 
delphia, the  subscribers  should  choose  to  pay  per  number,  the  price  will 
be  Two  Pence.  (3).  The  papers  in  the  town  of  Boston,  shall  be  deliv- 
ered to  the  subscribers  as  early  as  possible  on  publication  days.  (4). 
Advertisements  shall  be  inserted  at  as  low  a  price  as  is  demanded  by 
any  of  their  brethren  in  the  art,  and  continued,  if  desired  in  Six  Num- 
bers. (5).  Gentlemen  in  the  country  may  be  supplied  with  this  paper 
at  the  above  price,  (postage  excepted)  which  is  cheaper  than  any  other 
papers,  if  the  advantage  of  receiving  them  twice  in  the  week  is  consid- 
ered. The  publishers  engage  to  use  every  effort  to  obtain,  and  the  most 
scrutinous  circumspection  in  collecting  whatever  may  be  thought  of 
public  utility,  or  private  amusement:  Variety  shall  be  courted  in  all  its 
shapes,  in  the  importance  of  political  information  —  in  the  sprightli- 
ness  of  mirth  —  in  the  playful  levity  of  imagination  —  in  the  just  se- 
verity of  satire  —  in  the  vivacity  of  ridicule  —  in  the  luxuriance  of  poe- 
try —  and  in  the  simplicity  of  truth.  We  shall  examine  the  regulations 
of  office  with  candor  — approve  with  pleasure  —  or  condemn  with 
boldness.  Uninfluenced  by  party,  we  aim  only  to  be  just.  The  assistance 
of  the  learned,  the"7ud*icTo'uslin3"lhe  curious  is  solicited:  Productions 
of  public  utility,  however  severe,  if  consistent  with  truth,  shall  be  ad- 
mitted; and  the  modest  correspondent  may  depend  on  the  strictest  se- 
crecy. Reservoirs  will  be  established  in  public  houses  for  the  reception 
of  information,  whether  foreign,  local  or  poetical. 

RUSSELL'S  DEVICES  TO  ATTRACT  ATTENTION 

In  spite  of  this  rather  pretentious  announcement  for  a  paper, 
The  Centinel  increased  in  circulation,  not  because  of  the  amount 
or  the  quality  of  its  news,  but  because  its  publisher  was  the  first 
to  realize  the  value  of  dramatized  and  illustrated  features  for 
hislftrbsmbefs.  He  was  extremely  fertile  in  devices  and  never 
hesitated  to  use  pictures  or  mechanical  arrangement  in  types 


130       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

to  attract  the  attention  of  readers.  He  fought  for  the  adoption 
of  the  Constitution,  but  was  bitterly  opposed  to  the  return  of 
confiscated  property  to  those  who  had  left  America  during  the 
War  to  live  in  England  or  any  of  the  colonies.  No  paper  in 
Massachusetts  was  more  bitter  toward  the  tax  on  newspapers 
passed  by  the  State  Legislature  in  1785  than  was  The  CenMnel 
Russell  took  special  delight  in  printing  allegories  in  his  paper. 
Of  these,  one  of  the  best  was  entitled  "The  Federal  Ship,"  pub- 
lished shortly  after  the  inauguration  of  Washington  in  1789:  — 

Just  launched  on  the  Ocean  of  Empire,  the  Ship  COLUMBIA, 
GEORGE  WASHINGTON,  Commander,  which,  after  being  thir- 
teen years  in  dock,  is  at  length  well  manned,  and  in  very  good  condi- 
tion. The  Ship  is  a,  first  rate  —  has  a  good  bottom,  which  all  the  Builders 
have  pronounced  sound  and  good.  Some  objection  has  been  made  to 
parts  of  the  tackling,  or  running  rigging,  which,  it  is  supposed,  will  be 
altered,  when  they  shall  be  found  to  be  incommodious,  as  the  Ship  is 
able  to  make  very  good  headway  with  them  as  they  are.  A  jury  of  Car- 
penters have  this  matter  now  under  consideration.  The  Captain  and 
First  Mate  are  universally  esteemed  by  all  the  Owners,  —  Eleven 1  in 
number  —  and  she  has  been  insured,  under  their  direction,  to  make  a 
good  mooring  in  the  harbor  of  Public  Prosperity  and  Felicity  —  whither- 
to  she  is  bound.  The  Owners  can  furnish,  besides  the  Ship's  Company, 
the  following  materials:  —  New-Hampshire,  the  Masts  and  Spars; 
Massachusetts,  Timber  for  the  Hull,  Fish,  &c.;  Connecticut,  Beef  and 
Pork;  New-York,  Porter  and  other  Cabin  stores;  New-Jersey,  the  Cord- 
age; Pennsylvania,  Flour  and  Bread;  —  Delaware,  the  Colors,  and 
Clothing  for  the  Crew;  Maryland,  the  Iron  work  and  small  Anchors; 
Virginia,  Tobacco  and  the  Sheet  Anchor;  South-Carolina,  Rice;  and 
Georgia,  Powder  and  small  Provisions.  Thus  found,  may  this  good  Ship 
put  to  sea,  and  the  prayer  of  all  is,  that  GOD  may  preserve  her,  and  bring 
her  in  safety  to  her  desired  haven. 

On  June  16,  1790,  The  Centinel  was  enlarged  and  the  word 
Columbian  was  substituted  for  that  of  Massachusetts. 


RUSSELL'S  OFFER  TO  CONGRESS 

One  incident  in  the  career  of  Russell  should  not  be  omitted. 
When  Congress  held  its  first  session,  the  country  was  almost 
bankrupt.  In  view  of  this  fact,  Russell  offered  to  publish  in  his 

1  Only  eleven  States  had  then  adopted  the  Constitution.  North  Caro- 
lina and  Rhode  Island  are  not  recognized  as  owners  of  the  Ship. 


FIRST  DAILIES  AND  EARLY  PARTY  ORGANS    131 

paper  all  the  laws  and  other  legal  advertisements  without  pay. 
Toward  the  close  of  Washington's  inauguration,  he  was  asked 
for  a  bill  and  promptly  sent  a  receipted  account  of  the  indebted- 
ness of  the  Government  to  him.  When  Washington  learned  of 
the  fact,  he  remarked:  "This  must  not  be.  When  Mr.  Russell 
offered  to  publish  the  laws  without  pay,  we  were  poor.  It  was  a 
generous  offer.  We  are  now  able  to  pay  our  debts.  This  is  a  debt 
of  honor,  and  must  be  discharged."  Russell  was  later  sent  a  check 
for  seven  thousand  dollars,  the  amount  of  his  receipted  bill. 

WORDLESS   JOURNALISM 

Russell,  more  than  any  other  editor  of  the  period,  recognized 
the  value  of  wordless  journalism.  He  made  the  pictures  in  The 
Centinel  serve  the  same  purpose  that  the  cartoon  does  to-day. 
His  device  of  "The  Federal  Pillars"  attracted  much  attention. 
Whenever  a  new  State  adopted  the  Constitution  he  added  an- 
other pillar  to  the  "Federal  Edifice."  In  the  early  part  of  Au- 
gust, 1788,  when  eleven  States  had  approved  the  Constitution, 
he  ran  in  his  paper  a  device  showing  conditions  then  obtaining. 
The  eleven  States  were  represented  by  the  corresponding  num- 
ber of  perpendicular  pillars.  North  Carolina's  pillar  was  raised 
to  an  angle  of  forty-five  degrees,  while  the  one  for  Rhode  Island 
appeared  broken  above  its  base.  Hope  for  the  latter  was  held 
out  in  the  inscription  at  the  right  of  the  capital:  "fi&*  The 
foundation  good  —  it  may  yet  be  saved."  Evidently  Russell 
had  no  doubt  about  the  final  action  of  North  Carolina,  for  over 
the  pillar  which  represented  that  State  was  the  encouraging 
news:  "Rise  it  will."  Written  testimony  shows  how  eagerly 
readers  of  The  Massachusetts  Centinel  watched  the  rise  of  col- 
umns in  the  "National  Dome." 

THE   GERRYMANDER   CARTOON 

It  was  this  same  Russell  who  printed  the  Gerrymander  car- 
toon, though  it  was  drawn  by  Gilbert  Stuart.  The  struggle  be- 
tween the  Republicans  and  the  Federalists  for  the  control  of  the 
State  of  Massachusetts  was  extremely  bitter.  In  1811  the  for- 
mer had  not  only  elected  Elbridge  Gerry  Governor,  but  also 
carried  both  houses  of  the  Legislature.  To  retain  this  supremacy 


132       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

in  the  future,  that  there  might  be  no  doubt  about  the  election  of 
a  United  States  Senator,  the  Republicans  remapped  the  sena- 
torial districts  and  divided  the  power  of  their  political  oppo- 
nents by  paying  no  attention  to  county  boundaries.  In  Essex 
County  the  arrangement  of  the  district  in  relation  to  the  town 
was  most  singular  and  absurd.  Russell  had  opposed  such  a  polit- 
ical move,  and  after  it  had  become  a  law  he  had  taken  a  map  of 
Essex  County  and  colored  the  towns  according  to  senatorial  dis- 
tricts. The  strange  map  hung  on  the  walls  of  his  editorial  sanc- 
tum. One  day  as  Stuart  gazed  at  the  map  he  remarked  to  Rus- 
sell that  the  towns  as  they  had  been  colored  resembled  some 
monstrous  animal.  A  few  touches  of  his  pencil  added  a  head, 
wings,  and  claws.  "There,"  said  Stuart,  according  to  the  re- 
port, "that  will  do  for  a  salamander."  Editor  Russell  looked  at 
the  revised  map  only  a  minute  and  then  exclaimed,  "Salaman- 
der? Better  call  it  Gerrymander."  In  describing  this  incident  in 
his  "Reminiscences,"  Joseph  T.  Buckingham  said:  "The  word 
became  a  proverb,  and,  for  many  years,  was  in  popular  use 
among  the  Federalists  as  a  term  of  reproach  to  the  Democratic 
Legislature,  which  had  distinguished  itself  by  this  act  of  polit- 
ical turpitude.  An  engraving  of  the  Gerrymander  was  made, 
and  hawked  about  the  State,  which  had  some  effect  in  annoy- 
ing the  Democratic  Party."  Republicans  had  by  this  time  come 
to  be  known  as  Democrats  —  a  term  first  used  by  the  Federal- 
ists in  ridicule. 

NECESSITY   OF   CHANGE   IN   NAME 

When  Washington  retired  to  Mount  Vernon,  The  Centinel 
became  a  faithful  supporter  of  John  .Adams  and  his  policies. 
The  words  Republican  Journal  in  the  second  part  of  the  title  of 
the  paper  was  in  a  certain  sense  a  misnomer.  It  was  later 
changed  to  The  Massachusetts  Federalist.  While  a  great  Fed- 
eral organ,  The  Centinel  reported  European  news  much  better 
than  its  contemporaries.  Russell  subscribed  to  the  leading  for- 
'  eign  journals  and  reprinted  in  condensed  form  the  more  impor- 
tant items.  This  practice  made  the  paper  a  wholesale  distribu- 
tor of  news  for  the  country  printers  of  New  England*  Russell 
did  not  hesitate  to  rebuke  the  sensational  press  because  it  had 


FIRST  DAILIES  AND  EARLY  PARTY  ORGANS    133 

"ejected  mud,  filth,  and  venom,"  in  the  political  campaigns 
and  had  "  attacked  and  blackened  the  best  characters  the  world 
ever  boasted."  Nevertheless,  being  the  editor  of  a  Federalist 
organ,  Russell  was  forced,  much  against  his  will,  to  support  De 
Witt  Clinton  of  New  York  and  to  oppose  James  Madison.  In 
proportion  as  the  Federalists  lost  in  influence,  The  Centinel — 
now  called  The  Columbian  Centinel  —  lost  in  subscription.  To- 
ward the  close  of  1828  Russell  retired  from  newspaper  work 
and  in  1840  The  Centinel  became  a  part  of  The  Boston  Daily 
Advertiser. 

FIRST  FEATURE   PAPER 

Before  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century,  American  journal- 
ism had  a  ' '  feature '  *  j^ajger^  the  departments  of  which  attracted 
more  attention  than  its  "latest  intelligence  both  foreign  and  do- 
mestick."  This  paper  was  started,  not  in  one  of  the  larger  cities, 
but  in  the  little  country  village  of  Walpole,  New  Hampshire. 
Its  promoters  were  Isaiah  Thomas,  publisher  of  The  Worcester 
Spy,  and  David  Carlisle,  a  native  of  Walpole,  and  at  one  time 
an  apprentice  in  the  office  of  Thomas  at  Worcester,  Massa- 
chusetts. Taking  a  printing-press  and  type  which  had  seen  good 
service  on  The  Spy,  Carlisle  brought  out  in  April,  1793,  The  New 
Hampshire  Journal.  In  this  sheet  may  be  found  the  precursor 
of  the  modern  newspaper  "colyum"  in  a  department  furnished 
by  Royal  Tyler,  whose  humorous  squibs  were  headed  "From 
the  Shop  of  Messrs.  Colon  and  Spondee."  No  paragraphers  of 
the  nineteenth  century  ever  surpassed  Tyler  in  skillful  allitera- 
tion, of  which  he  was  unusually  fond.  Tyler  had  a  rival  in  Isaac 
Storey,  a  graduate  of  Harvard  College  of  the  Class  of  1792,  who 
signed  his  political  effusions,  "Peter  Quince."  Thomas  Green 
Fessenden,  upon  his  graduation  from  Dartmouth  College,  be- 
gan, under  the  signature  of  Simon  Spunkey,"  a  series  of  politi- 
cal lampoons  which  in  Hudibrastic  style  satirized  the  French 
and  the  Republican  politics.  David  Everett,  also  a  graduate 
ot  Dartmouth  College,  wrote  a  prose  department  of  clever  es- 
says, "Common  Sense  in  Dishabille."  These  humorous  essays 
were  so  popular  that  they  were  not  only  republished  in  many 
of  the  newspapers,  but  were  afterwards  collected  and  printed  in 


134       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

a  small  volume.  Other  clever  features  were  supplied  by  writers, 
doubtless  college-bred,  and  were  signed,  "The  Rural  Wanderer," 
"The  Medler,"  "Peter  Pencil,"  "The  Hermit,"  etc.  The  most 
popular  department  in  the  paper  was  the  one  which  had  for  its 
caption  "The  Lay  Preacher."  For  it  Joseph  Dennie  wrote  lay 
sermons  which  went  the  rounds  of  the  rural  press  and  even  found 
their  way  into  the  columns  of  the  city  newspapers.  Such  was 
the  demand  of  readers  for  these  lay  sermons  that  editors  were 
sometimes  forced  to  insert  them  even  when  pressure  was  so 
great  on  the  newspaper  columns  that  advertisements  had  to 
be  omitted.  For  some  reason,  possibly  because  his  associates 
were  so  fond  of  showing  their  scholastic  attainments,  Dennie 
went  out  of  his  way  to  lampoon  both  Harvard  and  Dartmouth 
Colleges.  More  and  more  these  special  features  crowded  out 
the  news  until  the  paper  finally  became  almost  a  satirical 
weekly.  Because  of  the  popularity  of  The  New  Hampshire  Jour- 
'nal  two  extra  post-riders  had  to  leave  Walpole  in  order  to  dis- 
tribute the  paper. 

TWO   OLDEST  DAILIES   IN   NEW  YORK 

Two  dailies  founded  in  New  York  with  political  backing  de- 
serve special  mention.  Both  papers  were  founded  as  Federal 
organs  and  were  inspired  by  Alexander  Hamilton,  who  was  en- 
deavoring to  strengthen  the  grip  of  his  party  on  the  City  of  New 
York. 

NOAH  WEBSTER  AN  EDITOR 

The  earlier,  The  Minerva,  now  The  Globe  and  Commercial 
Advertiser,  was  established  on  December  9,  1793,  and  induced 
Noah  Webster,  the  lexicographer  at  Hartford,  to  become  its 
editor.  It  was  published  "every  day,  Sundays  excepted,  at  four 
o'clock  or  earlier  if  the  arrival  of  the  mail  will  permit."  Webster, 
in  outlining  the  editorial  policy  of  his  paper,  said  that  it  would 
be  "The  Friend  of  Government,  of  Freedom,  of  Virtue,  and 
every  Species  of  Improvement."  His  editorials  were  undoubt- 
edly on  the  highest  plane  of  any  of  the  period  and  the  paper 
was  the  ablest  edited  of  any  Federal  daily.  He  was  the  first 
editor  to  advocate  no  entangling  alliances.  "I  have  defended 


FIRST  DAILIES  AND  EARLY  PARTY  ORGANS    135 

the  administration  of  the  national  government  because  I  be- 
lieve it  to  have  been  incorrupt  and  according  to  the  Spirit  of 
the  Constitution.  I  have  advocated  the  Constitution  because, 
if  not  perfect,  it  is  probably  the  best  we  can  obtain,  and  be- 
cause experience  teaches  us,  it  has  secured  to  us  important 
rights  and  great  public  prosperity.  ...  I  have  cautioned  my 
fellow-citizens  against  all  foreign  intrigues,  because  I  am  aware 
of  the  fatal  dissensions  they  would  introduce  into  our  councils, 
and  because  I  hold  it  proper  for  us  to  attach  ourselves  to  no 
foreign  nation  whatever,  and  be  in  spirit  and  truth  Americans" 
In  another  editorial,  he  tried  to  prove  that  slave  labor  was  less 
productive  than  that  of  freemen. 

Connected  with  The  Minerva  was  The  Herald,  Gazette  far  the 
Country,  a  semi-weekly  paper  made  up  of  extracts  from  the  daily 
and  printed  solely  for  national  circulation.  Webster  wielded 
more  power  through  the  columns  of  The  Herald  than  he  did 
through  those  of  The  Minerva,  just  as  Horace  Greeley  later 
moulded  public  opinion  chiefly  through  his  weekly  rather  than 
his  daily  edition  of  The  Tribune.  The  Herald,  however,  also 
changed  its  name  before  the  close  of  the  period  to  The  New  York 
Spectator,  but  its  relation  to  the  daily  continued  the  same. 
When  Webster  retired  on  July  1,  1799,  Zachariah  Lewis  became 
the  editor  and  held  that  position  until  April  11,  1820,  when 
Colonel  W.  L.  Stone,  of  The  Albany  Daily  Advertiser,  assumed 
editorial  control. 

COLEMAN   STARTS    "EVENING   POST" 

The  second  was  The  Evening  Post,  which  was  first  set  up  on 
November  16,  1801.  Its  editor  was  William  Coleman.  This 
paper  must  not  be  confused  with  several  others  of  the  same 
name.  The  first  Post  was  that  of  the  Colonial  Period  and  was 
the  fourth  paper  in  the  city;  the  second  was  The  New  York 
Gazetteer;  or  Daily  Evening  Post,  published  by  Kollock,  Carroll, 
and  Patterson  from  August  24,  1786,  until  December  18  of  that 
year,  when  its  title  was  changed  to  The  New  York  Gazetteer  and 
Public  Advertiser;  the  third  was  The  New  York  Evening  Post,  a 
tri-weekly  started  on  November  17,  1794,  by  L.  Wayland,  and 
discontinued  May  25,  1795;  the  fourth  was  the  Federal  daily  of 


136       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

1801.  Coleman  was  a  lawyer  who  had  attracted  the  attention  of 
the  Federal  leaders  and  had  had  some  experience  on  The  Gazette 
at  Greenfield,  Massachusetts.  Coming  to  New  York  in  1798, 
he  had  been  given  an  appointment  in  the  Circuit  Court,  but  in 
the  political  upheaval  about  the  middle  of  1801  he,  along  with 
many  other  members  of  his  party,  had  been  removed  from  his 
office. 

BRYANT  TELLS   STORY  OF   "POST" 

The  story  of  The  Evening  Post  from  1801  to  1812  was  well  told 
by  William  Cullen  Bryant  in  an  editorial  prepared  for  the  semi- 
centennial of  that  paper  in  1851.  The  original  prospectus, 
though  somewhat  measured  in  style,  was  well  written.  The 
editor,  William  Coleman,  while  avowing  his  allegiance  to  the 
Federal  Party,  announced  that  "In  each  party  are  honest  and 
virtuous  men"  and  expressly  persuaded  that  the  people  needed 
only  to  be  well  informed  to  decide  public  questions  rightly.  He 
contemplated  a  wider  sphere  than  most  secular  papers  of  that 
day  and  spoke  of  his  designs  "to  inculcate  just  principles  in  re- 
ligion" as  well  as  in  "morals  and  politics."  He  even  made  some 
attempt  to  carry  out  this  intention,  for  in  an  early  number  he 
printed  a  communication  in  reply  to  a  heresy  avowed  by  The 
American  Citizen,  a  Republican  daily  paper,  which  had  been 
maintaining  that  the  soul  was  immaterial  and  that  death  was  a 
sleep  of  the  mind  as  well  as  of  the  body.  At  the  outset,  Coleman 
made  a  sincere  effort  to  avoid  those  personal  controversies  so 
common  among  the  conductors  of  party  papers,  and  with  which 
their  columns  were  so  much  occupied.  In  a  "leader"  in  the  first 
number,  he  expressed  his  abhorrence  of  "personal  virulence,  low 
sarcasms,  and  verbal  contentions  with  printers  and  editors" 
and  his  determination  not  to  be  deviated  from  the  line  of  tem- 
perate discussion  —  a  resolution  he  found  difficult  to  keep. 

The  Evening  Post  occasionally  indulged  in  a  comment  in  a 
lighter  vein.  On  May  18,  1802,  it  answered  a  female  correspon- 
dent, who  had  asked  why  the  paper,  like  other  papers,  had  not 
censored  the  style  of  ladies'  dress  then  in  vogue:  "Female  dress 
of  the  modern  Parisian  cut,  however  deficient  in  point  of  the 
ornament  vulgarly  called  clothing,  must  at  least  be  allowed  to 


FIRST  DAILIES  AND  EARLY  PARTY  ORGANS    137 

be  not  entirely  without  its  advantages.  If  there  is  danger  of  its 
making  the  gentlemen  too  prompt  to  advance,  let  it  not  be  un- 
observed that  it  fits  the  lady  to  escape.  Unlike  the  dull  drapery 
of  petticoats  worn  some  years  since,  but  now  banished  to  the 
nursery  or  kitchen,  the  present  light  substitute  gives  an  air  of 
celerity  which  seems  to  say  —  Catch  me  if  you  can."  During 
the  first  decade  of  The  Evening  Post  there  was  much  discussion  of 
public  questions;  its  editorial  articles,  even  when  brief,  seldom 
if  ever  seemed  to  think  that  it  was  their  sphere  to  pronounce 
prompt  judgment  on  every  question  of  a  public  nature  the 
moment  it  arose.  The  annual  message  of  Jefferson  to  Congress 
in  1801  was  published  in  The  Evening  Post  on  December  12  of 
that  year  without  comment.  Not  until  December  17  was  there 
any  discussion,  but  when  it  started  it  lasted  until  April  8  of  the 
following  year.  Though  Coleman  was  styled  Field-Marshal  of 
the  Federal  Party  he  was  opposed  to  the  famous  Hartford 
Convention.  Mention  has  been  made  that  Coleman  found  it 
impossible  because  of  the  times  to  keep  personalities  out  of  The 
Post.  By  way  of  illustration,  its  editorial  comment  of  Decem- 
ber 2,  1803,  may  be  quoted:  "Cheetham's  New  York  Watch- 
Tower  [connected  with  The  American  Citizen]  has  recently  come 
to  hand  in  an  entire  new  dress  —  in  such  a  strange  habit,  in  fact, 
that  it  was  almost  as  much  unknown  as  the  notorious  swindler 
who  disguised  himself  by  putting  on  a  clean  shirt.  But  Cheetham 
has  been  cautious,  while  altering  his  manner,  not  to  improve  his 
matter.  Falsehoods  appear  in  the  columns  of  The  Watch-Tower 
as  numerous  as  usual,  with  no  other  difference,  than  that  they 
shew  a  face  more  bold."  For  the  benefit  of  the  lay  reader,  it  may 
be  said  that  "bold  face"  is  a  term  used  to  designate  a  certain 
kind  of  type,  as  well  as  to  describe  the  actions  of  individuals. 

Coleman,  of  The  Evening  Post,  had  to  defend  himself  not  only 
against  the  attacks  of  Cheetham  in  The  American  Citizen, 
a  continuation  of  Holt's  New  York  Journal,  but  also  against 
those  of  Duane  in  The  Aurora,  a  continuation  of  Bache's  Phila- 
delphia Advertiser.  This  newspaper  war  was  typical  of  the  period. 
Coleman  edited  a  Federal  paper  and  Cheetham  and  Duane, 
Republican  sheets.  Sometimes  Coleman  attacked  his  rivals 
separately,  but  not  infrequently  he  attempted  to  kill,  editorially, 


138       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

both  editors  with  one  stone.    For  instance,  here  is  a  quatrain 
which  he  once  hurled  at  his  rival  editors :  — 

Lie  on,  Duane,  lie  on  for  pay, 

And,  Cheetham  too,  lie  thou  too; 
More  against  truth  you  cannot  say 

Than  truth  can  say  'gainst  you. 


LITERARY   DAILY   OF   THE   TIME 

At  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century  the  foremost  lit- 
erary newspaper  in  New  York  was  unquestionably  The  Morning 
Chronicle,  which  first  appeared  on  Friday,  October  1,  1802,  with 
Peter  Irving  as  managing  editor.  In  his  opening  prospectus  he 
announced  that  "while  he  intended  to  give  the  earliest  com- 
mercial intelligences  and  to  advocate  with  manly  freedom 
genuine  Republican  principles,  he  also  intended  to  blend  the  in- 
terests of  literature  with  those  of  commerce  and  politics  and  to 
enrich  its  columns  with  scientific  information."  He  asserted  that 
"malignity,  detraction  and  scurrilous  abuse  should  never  be 
permitted  to  stain  its  pages."  Its  literary  contents  comprised 
criticisms,  letters,  selections,  and  extracts  from  the  literati  of 
the  day.  The  Chronicle  was  not  without  its  lighter  vein  depart- 
ment. Irving  promised  in  his  introduction  "sportive  effusions 
of  wit  and  humor"  which  materialized  with  a  series  of  papers  on 
plays  and  players,  fashionable  foolishness,  and  the  passing 
humors  of  the  hour.  These  were  signed  with  the  nom-de-plume 
of  "Jonathan  Oldstyle"  and  were  thought  for  a  long  time  to 
come  from  the  pen  of  Peter  Irving,  but  in  reality  they  came 
from  that  of  his  younger  brother,  Washington.  Another  brother, 
John  Treat  Irving,  contributed  to  the  columns  of  The  Chronicle 
bits  of  verse  in  which  he  satirized  the  party  conflicts  of  the  day. 
Still  another  brother,  William  Irving,  the  eldest  of  the  family, 
told  in  the  columns  of  The  Chronicle  his  experiences  as  an  Indian 
trader  on  the  Mohawk  and  later  published  pungent  satire  about 
the  doings  of  the  day.  James  K.  Paulding,  whose  sister  had 
married  William  Irving,  became  a  contributor  of  verse.  The 
Morning  Chronicle  was  a  warm  supporter  of  Aaron  Burr  and 
devoted  much  space  to  defending  the  charges  brought  against 
him  in  the  columns  of  The  Evening  Post.  The  death  of  Hamilton 


FIRST  DAILIES  AND  EARLY  PARTY  ORGANS    139 

not  only  killed  Burr  socially  and  politically,  but  also  killed  The 
Chronicle.  Its  remains  were  purchased  in  1805  by  The  Pough- 
keepsie  Journal. 

FIRST  PAPER  WITH   TWO   EDITIONS 

The  year  179(tsaw  an  innovation  in  the  shape  of  two  editions, 
morning  aiicTevening,  of  the  same  paper.  In  that  year  Samuel 
H.  Smith,  who  afterwards  achieved  more  distinction  in  the  field 
of  journalism  as  the  editor  of  The  National  Intelligencer  at  Wash- 
ington, published  The  New  World  at  Philadelphia  "  every  morn- 
ing and  evening,  Sundays  excepted."  In  reality  the  paper  had 
only  one  edition,  for  the  sheet  was  printed  all  at  the  same  time 
and  was  then  divided;  one  half  went  to  the  customer  in  the 
morning  and  the  second  to  him  in  the  afternoon.  The  New 
World,  being  a  novelty,  attracted  considerable  attention  for  a 
short  time,  but  subscribers,  not  satisfied  with  the  paper,  discon- 
tinued their  subscriptions  and  the  venture  was  abandoned  after 
a  few  months.  Nevertheless,  here  was  the  beginning  of  a  system 
which,  in  the  twentieth  century,  yields  in  some  of  the  metro- 
politan cities  an  edition  of  the  same  paper  almost  every  hour. 

"COURIER"  OF  CHARLESTON 

One  of  the  most  influential  papers  in  the  South  during  the 
early  part  of  the  nineteenth  century  was  The  Courier  estab- 
lished at  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  on  January  10,  1803,  as  a 
Federal  organ.  Its  publisher  was  Loring  Andrews,  who  had  pre- 
viously been  connected  with  The  Herald  of  Freedom  in  Boston, 
The  Western  Star  in  Stockbridge,  Massachusetts,  and  The  Sen- 
tinel in  Albany.  On  the  death  of  Andrews  on  October  19,  1805, 
The  Courier  passed  into  other  hands  and  became  one  of  the  most 
enterprising  newspapers  of  the  State.  In  its  calm  discussion  of 
political  matters  it  set  an  example  worthy  of  imitation  by  other 
papers.  The  Courier,  though  being  one  of  the  most  influential 
papers  of  the  State,  refused  to  yield  to  the  public  demand  for 
editorial  support  of  the  Ordinance  of  Nullification  passed  at  the 
Nullification  Convention,  but  being  a  real  newspaper  it  did  give 
its  readers  somewhat  fully  an  account  of  the  acts  of  the  Con- 
vention. 


CHAPTER   X 

PARTY  PRESS  PERIOD 

1812—1832 

THE  American  press  commonly  spoke  of  the  War  of  1812-15 
as  ''Madison's  War."  The  newspapers  of  New  England,  where 
the  war  was  unpopular,  were  especially  bitter  in  personal  at- 
tacks. The  burning  of  the  public  buildings  at  Washington  and 
the  reward  offered  by  British  agents  for  scalps  of  Americans  — 
including  women  and  children  —  fanned  the  press  to  an  edito- 
rial fury  in  which  many  of  the  papers,  heretofore  opposed  to 
Madison,  joined.  As  a  matter  of  simple  justice,  it  should 
be  noted  that  both  of  these  acts  of  barbarism  were  severely 
denounced  and  to  a  certain  extent  repudiated  by  the  press  of 
England. 

The  newspapers  published  west  of  the  Alleghanies  were  more 
active  in  their  support  of  Madison.  By  1812  the  professional 
press  in  the  new  settlements  was  already  exerting  considerable 
political  influence.  Some  of  the  papers  were  making  a  sincere 
attempt  to  get  the  news  while  it  had  a  timely  interest.  Among 
the  most  enterprising  of  these  sheets  was  The  Reporter  started 
at  Lexington,  Kentucky,  in  1808  by  Worseley  and  Overton, 
but  later  conducted  exclusively  by  Worseley.  William  Worseley 
was  not  satisfied  with  simply  the  news  service  of  the  weekly  post- 
rider.  On  Friday,  for  example,  he  sent  his  negro  servant  - 
commonly  called  " Worseley 's  Man  Friday" — to  meet  the 
mail-carrier  on  the  Overland  Trail,  then  to  hurry  back  to  the 
newspaper  office  with  the  Washington  letter  and  the  Eastern 
exchanges.  The  Reporter  was  unusually  active,  not  only  in  the 
gathering  of  its  news,  but  during  the  War  of  1812  it  went  out- 
side of  merely  printing  the  news  to  collect  clothing,  etc.,  which 
it  forwarded  to  the  Kentucky  volunteers  in  the  army.  To  The 
Reporter,  therefore,  belongs  the  credit,  possibly,  of  being  the 
first  to  be  something  more  than  a  mere  newspaper. 


PARTY  PRESS  PERIOD  141 

THE   TORY   PRESS 

Papers  which  opposed  taking  up  arms  against  England  came 
to  be  known  as  the  Tory  press  and  held  much  the  same  position 
as  that  of  the  Copperhead  press  during  the  War  of  the  States. 
The  Tory  press  was  severely  rebuked,  not  only  by  rival  news- 
papers, but  also  by  William  Charles,  the  real  cartoonist  of  the 
War  of  1812.  One  of  his  cartoons  had  for  its  title  "The  Tory 
Editor  and  His  Apes  Giving  Their  Pitiful  Advice  to  the  American 
Sailors."  From  the  Tory  cave,  shown  in  the  illustration,  came 
the  editor  of  The  Boston  Gazette,  who  was  the  chief  spokesman 
of  the  Tory  press.  His  advice  to  the  sailors  was  —  according  to 
the  cartoon  —  as  follows:  —  "Oh!  Poor  Sailors:  Oh!  Poor  Blue 
Jackets!  Don't  go  to  war  with  the  mother  country!  Don't  go 
to  war  with  good  old  England !  You  will  get  hard  knocks  on  the 
pate !  —  You  will  spend  your  years  in  English  prisons  and 
prison  ships!--  Don't  submit  to  the  War!  —  You  will  beg  in 
the  streets  or  rot  in  the  alms  house!  —  Oh!  poor  sailors!  —  Oh! 
poor  blue  jackets!"  A  reply  from  one  of  the  sailors  in  the  car- 
toon was:  "We'll  stick  to  our  quarters,  boys,  like  true  hearted 
sailors,  and  may  the  lubber  be  slushed  home  to  the  gizzard,  and 
scrap'd  with  a  shark's  tooth,  who  would  mutiny  'gainst  com- 
mander and  desert  ship  'cause  a  hard  gale  and  a  tough  passage 
brings  him  to  short  allowance.  Three  cheers  for  Yankee  doodle." 

Some  of  the  papers  which  Charles  put  in  the  Tory  class  and 
made  to  ape  The  Boston  Gazette  were  The  New-York  Gazette, 
The  Charleston  Courier,  The  Washington  Federalist,  The  Nor- 
folk Ledger,  The  New  York  Evening  Post,  The  Boston  Reporter, 
etc.  His  cartoon,  though  crudely  drawn,  presented  in  its  dia- 
logue the  editorial  attitude  of  the  two  sections  into  which  the 
American  press  was  divided  on  account  of  the  war. 

PRESS   ON   HARTFORD   CONVENTION 

Republican  papers  made  no  end  of  fun  of  the  Commissioners 
appointed  at  the  Hartford  Convention  to  go  to  Washington  for 
the  purpose  of  protesting  against  the  distribution  of  the  Fed- 
eral taxes  and  of  arranging  for  better  protection  of  the  seaports 
on  the  Atlantic  Coast.  The  Commissioners,  reaching  Wash- 


142     HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

ington  at  the  same  same  time  that  the  Treaty  of  Peace  was 
made  public,  and  finding  that  their  mission  had  been  in  vain, 
almost  immediately  left  the  city.  One  newspaper,  The  National 
Advertiser,  printed  the  following  amusing  advertisement  under 
the  headline  " MISSING" :- 

Three  well-looking,  respectable  men,  who  appeared  to  be  travelling 
towards  Washington,  disappeared  from  Gadsby's  Hotel  on  Monday 
evening  last,  and  have  not  since  been  heard  of.  They  were  observed  to 
be  very  melancholic  on  hearing  the  news  of  the  peace,  and  one  of  them 
was  heard  to  say  with  a  sigh,  "Poor  Caleb  Strong!"  They  took  with 
them  their  saddlebags,  so  that  no  apprehension  is  entertained  of  their 
having  any  intention  to  make  away  with  themselves.  Whoever  will 
give  any  information  to  the  Hartford  convention  of  the  date  of  the  un- 
fortunate and  trustful  gentlemen  by  letter  (post-paid)  will  confer  a 
favor  upon  humanity.  The  newspapers,  particularly  the  Federalist 
newspapers,  are  requested  to  publish  this  advertisement  in  a  conspicu- 
ous place  and  send  in  their  bills  to  the  Hartford  convention. 

P.S.  One  of  the  gentlemen  was  called  Titus  Oates  or  some  such  name. 

The  Federal  press,  after  the  Hartford  Convention,  steadily 
declined  in  influence.  Some  of  its  most  radical  organs  which  had 
opposed  the  war  with  England  were  forced  to  suspend  publica- 
tion. Other  papers,  to  escape  a  similar  fate,  changed  parties  — 
an  act  which  often  meant  a  change  in  name,  for  Federalist  as  a 
title  for  a  newspaper  was  almost  as  common  at  the  time  as  was 
Gazette  in  the  Colonial  Period.  By  1820  the  Federal  Party  was 
without  a  single  electoral  vote. 

NEW   YORK   PAPERS   AT   CLOSE   OF  WAR 

At  the  close  of  the  War  of  1812,  New  York  had  seven  daily 
newspapers.  A  statement  of  the  circulation  of  these  various 
papers  will  not  only  give  an  idea  of  how  many  papers  the  lead- 
ing dailies  of  the  period  were  printing,  but  also  show  to  what 
extent  newspapers  were  being  read  in  the  city.  The  Mercantile 
Advertiser  had  a  circulation  of  2000;  The  Gazette,  1750;  The  Eve- 
ning Post,  1600;  The  Commercial  Advertiser,  1200;  The  Courier, 
920;  The  Columbian,  870;  The  National  Advocate,  800.  In  other 
words,  one  person  out  of  every  fifteen  was  a  newspaper  sub- 
scriber. The  small  circulation  of  the  last  few  papers  in  the  list 
may  be  explained  by  the  fact  that  they  had  been  but  recently 


PARTY  PRESS  PERIOD  143 

established  in  the  city.  The  Columbian  was  started  in  1808  by 
Charles  Holt,  after  he  had  set  The  Bee  buzzing  first  at  New  Lon- 
don, Connecticut,  and  later  at  Hudson,  New  York.  It  was  an 
organ  of  Jefferson  and  later  of  Madison.  The  National  Advocate 
had  only  just  appeared.  It  was  started  by  Tammany  Hall  in 
order  that  that  organization  might  have  an  official  organ.  The 
Republican  newspapers,  not  only  in  New  York,  but  in  the  other 
cities,  lost  no  opportunity  to  criticize  the  British  practice  of  im- 
pressing American  seamen  into  service.  It  is  rather  remarkable 
that  a  little  later  they  should  have  so  completely  ignored  the 
French  decree  about  the  confiscation  of  American  goods,  as  this 
decree  was  only  a  little  short  of  being  a  declaration  of  war. 

ERA   OF    "  BLACK   JOURNALISM "  ^ 

The  darkest  period  in  the  history  of  American  journalism  was 
that  which  began  :it  the  close  of  the  second  war  with  England, 
a  time  truthfully  characterized  as  the  "  period  of  black  journal- 
ism," when  a  greater  depth  of  degradation  was  reached  than  was 
ever  touched  in  the  so-called  "yellow"  period  of  recent  times. 
Those  who  look  over  the  papers  of  this  era  will  find  that  all  of 
the  customary  courtesies  of  life  were  put  aside;  that  the  papers 
of  both  parties  employed  the  vilest,  grossest  epithets  found  in 
the  English  language;  that  the  newspapers  advanced  the  most 
atrocious  charges  against  those  holding  public  offices  and  even 
so  forgot  themselves  as  to  attack  wives  and  sisters  in  their  dis- 
graceful accounts  of  the  personal  activities  of  office-holders,  i 

But  the  pendulum  began  to  swing  the  other  way.  Its  first 
push  toward  the  legitimate  function  of  the  newspaper  was  given 
by  Charles  Hammond  of  The  Gazette  of  Cincinnati.  He  refused 
to  make  his  paper  simply  an  organ  for  a  great  party  leader  and 
turned  it  into  a  medium  for  the  discussion  of  the  great  principles 
of  the  Republican  Government.  In  him  there  was  an  inborn 
love  of  truth  for  its  own  sake.  Hammond  once  expressed  his 
opinion  of  the  violent  personal  journalism  of  the  period  as  fol- 
lows: "I  am  afraid  my  quondam  crony,  Mr.  Shadrach  Penn,  of 
The  Louisville  Public  Advertiser,  has  kept  a  great  deal  of  bad 
company  since  the  days  of  our  political  intimacy.  He  seems  to 
mistake  vulgarity  for  wit  and  misrepresentation  for  argument; 


144       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

errors  from  which,  in  days  of  yore,  he  was  as  free  as  most  men. 
I  am  sometimes  constrained,  upon  better  acquaintance,  to 
think  and  speak  well  of  men  whom  I  once  reprobated.  I  have 
never  yet  felt  disposed  to  vituperate  a  man  that  I  once  esteemed 
and  commended.  If  such  sink  into  vicious  courses,  I  leave  their 
exposure  to  others.  I  should  as  soon  think  of  assassination  as 
attacking  a  friend  because  he  differed  from  me  in  politics."  In- 
cidentally, it  may  be  remarked  that  The  Public  Advertiser  just 
mentioned  had  started  as  a  weekly  in  1818,  but  became  on 
April  4,  1826,  the  first  daily  paper  in  Kentucky.  It  was  then 
edited  by  Shadrach  Penn,  Jr. 

The  coarseness,  the  shallowness,  the  distortion  of  news,  the 
use  of  the  press  to  avenge  private  wrongs,  —  all  this  and  much 
more  could  be  excused,  but  no  reason  can  be  found  to  justify  the 
papers  which  so  often  during  this  period  were  little  short  of  be- 
ing blackmailers  and  blackguards.  But  such  newspapers,  as  dur- 
ing the  periods  which  followed,  were  but  a  mirror  of  the  times, 
and  their  editors  were  no  better,  or  no  worse,  than  the  other 
men  of  the  day.  Even  the  books  of  the  period  were  at  times 
so  full  of  scandal  and  untruth  that  they  had  to  be  suppressed 
or  their  publishers,  being  afraid  that  they  would  be  prosecuted 
for  libel,  either  removed  the  title-pages  or  cut  their  names  from 
the  imprint.  It  is  important  to  bear  in  mind  that  no  better  cri- 
terion exists  by  which  to  judge  any  particular  period  than  the 
newspapers  published  during  the  same  era.  Before  hasty  judg- 
ment is  passed  upon  newspapers,  a  study  should  be  made  of  the 
times  in  which  they  were  published. 

A  PRESS  A   MIRROR  OF  TIMES 

Personal  fights  between  editors  cannot  be  understood  to-day 
without  a  knowledge  of  the  condition  of  the  times.  It  was  a 

the  home  and  of  fights  in  the 


streetsTNew  York  newspapers  told  of  the  fights  between  the 
Battery  boys  and  the  Lispenard  Hill's:  Boston  papers  recorded 
in  detail  the  encounters  between  the  North-Enders  and  the 
Charlestown  Pigs;  Philadelphia  papers  published  the  fights  be- 
tween the  Chestnut  Street  boys  and  the  crowd  which  called 
themselves  the  Northern  Liberties.  Roughly  speaking,  there 


PARTY  PRESS  PERIOD  145 

was  a  "hot  time  in  the  old  town/'  regardless  of  where  the  "old 
town"  was  located.  Such  times  were  naturally  mirrored  in  the 
press.  In  the  matter  of  excellence,  possibly  the  newspapers  of 
Boston  came  first,  those  of  Philadelphia  second,  and  those  of 
New  York  well  down  the  list.  For  instance,  James  G.  Brooks, 
who  had  edited  The  Minerva,  one  of  the  foremost  literary 
papers  of  the  early  nineteenth  century,  but  then  editor  of  The 
Courier,  publicly  posted  on  the  walls  and  fences  of  New  York  a 
bulletin  which  said,  "I  publish  M.  M.  Noah  of  The  Enquirer  as 
a  coward.  —  James  G.  Brooks."  It  is  an  interesting  comment 
to  record  that  these  two  New  York  papers  later  became  more 
friendly  and  united  under  the  title,  The  Courier  and  Enquirer, 
on  May  25,  1829. 

CONTENTS  OF  NEWSPAPERS 

To  the  party  press  a  most  important  piece  of  news  was  always 
the  report  of  the  official  proceedings  of  Washington.  Somehow 
it  never  occurred  to  the  typical  partisan  editor  of  this  period 
that  he  might  make  these  reports  more  interesting  if  they  were 
pruned  of  less  important  items,  but  instead  he  gave  the  routine 
detail  of  Congressional  debates,  no  matter  how  exciting  might 
be  the  news  of  his  local  community,  and  evidently  thought  that 
which  came  from  Washington  had  additional  news  value  be- 
cause of  its  source.  Even  advertising  space  was  sacrificed  to 
make  room  for  the  speech  of  some  representative  at  Washington 
who  liked  to  hear  himself  talk  and  who  was  spurred  on  to  talk 
the  longer  because  his  words  would  probably  appear  in  print. 
The  columns  of  the  party  newspaper  were  always  open  for  com- 
munications from  politicians  of  the  same  political  faith  —  a 
courtesy  which  was  usually  greatly  abused  both  to  the  annoy- 
ance of  some  readers  and  many  advertisers.  In  addition,  there 
were  usually  long-winded  editorials  which  often  included  a 
repetition  of  the  matter  already  stated  in  other  columns.  But 
if  it  had  not  been  for  such  full  reporting  in  party  organs  it  would 
have  been  extremely  doubtful  whether  the  deliberations  of  Con- 
gress would  have  been  preserved  for  posterity. 

Next  to  giving  his  readers  all  the  political  gossip  of  the  time, 
the  editor  of  the  period  thought  he  ought  to  provide  a  choice 


146       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

miscellany  of  all  sorts.  There  was  more  excuse  for  the  insertion 
of  such  matter,  for  the  magazines  had  not  yet  come  into  their 
own  and  books  were  still  too  expensive  for  purchase  by  any  save 
the  rich.  In  almost  every  newspaper,  regardless  of  party  affilia- 
tion, there  was  a  column  or  more  for  original  verse  through 
which  local  poets  rode  wild-shod,  for  poets  and  politicians  were 
great  seekers,  then,  as  now,  for  publicity.  Incidentally,  it  may 
be  remarked  that  much  of  the  poetry  of  the  day  dealt  with 
political  topics,  so  that  subscribers  might  get  good  measure  in 
political  matters.  The  most  interesting  reading,  even  in  some 
of  the  most  important  papers,  was  found  in  the.  letters  of  old 
inhabitants  who  had  left  to  seek  their  fortunes  beyond  the  Alle- 
ghanies  and  then  had  written  about  the  new  settlements  of  the 
West.  Letters  were  expensive  because  of  the  high  rate  of  pos- 
tage; consequently  their  writers  boiled  down  the  news.  Not 
yet  had  editors  realized  the  real  news  value  of  local  happenings. 

FIRST  HIGH   TARIFF   PAPERS 

In  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  press  of  the  period  was  bitterly 
partisan  in  character,  independent  papers  began  to  spring  up 
in  various  sections  of  the  country,  chiefly  in  New  England. 
Here,  professing  absolute  neutrality  in  politics,  they  became  the 
advocates  of  a  strong  protective  policy  for  American  indus- 
tries. Especially  important  was  The  Manufacturers'  and  Far- 
mers' Journal  and  Providence  and  Pawtucket  Advertiser,  which 
first  issued  from  the  printing-office  of  Miller  and  Hutchins  in 
the  Old  Coffee-House  in  Providence  on  January  3,  1820.  In- 
stead of  being  a  party  organ,  it  was  the  official  spokesman  for 
the  Rhode  Island  Society  for  the  Encouragement  of  Domestic 
Industries.  It  was  at  the  start  published  semi- weekly  and  be- 
cause of  its  non-partisan  character  had  a  circulation  among 
those  of  all  political  faiths.  So  carefully  did  it  avoid  having  any^ 
connection  with  political  parties  that  even  when  so  important  " 
a  matter  as  the  Missouri  Compromise  was  before  the  people 
it  made  no  mention  of  the  bill  save  in  its  reports  of  the  proceed- 
ing of  Congress.  Its  name  was  later  shortened  to  The  Providence 
Journal,  and  because  of  its  constantly  increasing  patronage 
was  able  to  appear  daily  on  and  after  July  21,  1829,  —  one  day 


PARTY  PRESS  PERIOD  147 

later  than  the  first  appearance  of  The  Daily  Advertiser  in  Provi- 
dence. 

The  Journal  from  that  time  on  continued  to  be  one  of  the  most 
influential  papers  of  Rhode  Island  and  during  the  great  Euro- 
pean War  which  broke  out  in  the  second  decade  of  the  twen- 
tieth century  it  often  " scooped"  in  its  news  items  the  majority 
of  the  larger  papers  of  the  metropolitan  cities. 

At  the  time  The  Manufacturers'  and  Farmers'  Journal  and 
Providence  and  Pawtucket  Advertiser  appeared,  the  tariff  ques- 
tion was  attracting  considerable  attention  in  the  press.  The 
papers  along  the  Atlantic  Coast,  from  The  Argus  in  Portland 
to  The  Enquirer  of  Richmond,  were  taking  up  in  their  columns 
the  discussion  of  protection  of  industries.  The  Boston  Courier 
was  started  with  the  help  of  Daniel  Webster  as  a  daily  news- 
paper in  Boston  on  March  2,  1824,  to  protect  "  infant  manu- 
facturers and  cotton  and  woolen  clothes  and  all  agricultural 
and  mechanical  products  against  foreign  competition."  The 
leading  exponent  in  New  York  of  protection  to  American  indus- 
tries was  The  Statesman.  These  early  papers  devoted  to  pro- 
tection were  most  severely  criticized,  on  the  ground  that  they 
were  advocating  a  Japanese  system  of  economy  and  would  even- 
tually shut  out  America  from  commercial  intercourse  with 
other  nations.  A  few  years,  however,  showed  a  very  radical 
change  in  the  attitude  of  many  Northern  papers  toward  the 
subject  of  protection.  At  the  beginning  of  the  period  the  great 
majority  of  the  Republican  newspapers,  strange  to  say,  was  in 
favor  of  a  high  tariff  because  of  political  hostility  felt  toward 
Great  Britain,  while  the  Federal  press  was  in  favor  of  unre- 
strictive  commerce.  The  "  Tariff  of  Abominations,"  passed  by 
Congress  during  the  Session  of  1827-28,  brought  about  a  very 
radical  change  in  the  tone  of  the  press.  Editorial  policies  were 
completely  reversed:  protection  became  popular  in  New  Eng- 
land and  free  trade  in  the  South.  Some  of  the  oldest  papers  in 
the  country  were  included  in  this  change :  The  Pittsburgh  Gazette 
which  had  been  started  in  a  log  house  on  the  Monongahela 
River  on  July  29,  1786,  and  was  the  first  paper  published  west 
of  the  Alleghanies,  had  long  been  a  Federal  organ  in  favor  of 
free  trade,  but  became  an  earnest  advocate  of  a  protective 


148       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

." 

tariff  and  the  purchase  of  home-made  goods.  This  change  in 
journalism  was  practically  simultaneous  with  the  change  of 
heart  on  the  part  of  many  prominent  statesmen  of  the  period. 

PARTY   ORGAN   IN   MAINE 

Party  organs  had  sprung  up  in  new  territory.  In  Maine,  for 
example,  The  Eastern  Argus  was  established  at  Portland  on  Sep- 
tember 8, 1803,  by  Calvin  Day  and  Nathaniel  Willis  to  promote 
the  interest  of  the  Republican  Party  —  called  by  The  Argus  and 
many  other  papers  the  Jacobin  Party  after  the  liberalists  of 
France.  When  Willis  about  a  year  later,  November  8  to  be 
exact,  became  the  sole  publisher,  he  was  so  radical  in  his  po- 
litical comment  that  he  landed  in  jail  —  a  circumstance  that 
greatly  added  to  the  popularity  of  The  Argus.  Week  by  week 
he  printed  in  his  paper:  "[Such  and  such]  week  of  the  impris- 
onment of  the  editor  for  daring  to  avow  sentiments  of  political 
freedom."  With  every  week  of  imprisonment  the  circulation  of 
The  Argus  increased.  On  January  7,  1808,  Willis  took  in  Francis 
Douglas  as  partner,  but  later,  wanting  to  make  The  Argus  a 
religious  newspaper  and  not  receiving  enough  encouragement 
from  the  clergy  in  Portland,  he  sold  out  his  interest  and  went 
to  Boston  to  carry  out  this  idea  in  The  Recorder,  started  on  Jan- 
uary 3,  1816,  possibly  the  first  religious  weekly  in  the  country. 
Douglas  ran  The  Argus  from  October  6,  1808,  until  his  death 
September  3,  1820,  when  his  widow  took  into  partnership 
Thomas  Todd.  The  Argus  became  a  semi-weekly  in  1824,  a  tri- 
weekly in  1832,  and  daily  in  1835.  The  Argus  during  the  Civil 
War  Period  was  a  severe  critic  of  Greeley  because  of  his  die-, 
tatorial  attitude  toward  the  Administration.  Greeley  retali- 
ated with  this  editorial  comment  on  September  20,  1862  about 
The  Argus  :  "Boy:  take  the  tongs  and  throw  the  foul  sheet  out 
of  the  window  and  never  let  another  come  into  the  Office."  It 
is  now  the  oldest  newspaper  in  Maine. 

PRESS   AND   POLITICS 

After  the  Tariff  of  Abominations  had  been  passed  in  Con- 
gress, some  of  the  most  bitter  papers  in  the  South  urgedj^sejDara- 
tion  from  the  Union  and  a  few  even  recommen3ecT  an  alliance 


PARTY  PRESS  PERIOD  149 

with  Great  Britain.  The  suggestion  was  even  made  that  a  few 
seats  in  the  House  of  Commons  should  be  set  aside  for  the  Ameri- 
can delegates.  If  newspaper  accounts  may  be  believed,  and 
there  is  no  reason  to  doubt  them,  the  suggestion  was  not  un- 
kindly received  in  England:  it  was  asserted  that  seats  in  Par- 
liament might  be  secured  upon  the  condition  that  no  formal 
endorsement  of  slavery  would  be  demanded.  This  condition 
completely  changed  the  editorial  tone  of  the  papers  which  ad- 
vocated the  alliance. 

The  party  organs  of  Jackson  bitterly  assailed  the  Adminis- 
tration of  John  Quincy  Adams,  on  account  of  its  so-called 
extravagance  and  waste  of  public  funds.  An  " awful  howl" 
appeared  in  the  press  when  the  charge  was  found  for  "  payment 
of  blacking  the  boots  of  the  Indian  delegates  at  Washington." 
These  delegates  wore  only  moccasins. 

The  papers  which  sprang  up  to  support  the  nomination  and 
then  the  election  of  Andrew  Jackson  were  literally  too  numerous 
to  mention.  Some  notice  must  be  made,  however,  of  a  most 
loyal  party  organ,  The  Patriot,  of  Portsmouth,  New  Hampshire. 
Its  editor,  Isaac  Hill,  was  rewarded  for  service  rendered  to  Jack- 
son by  the  nomination  of  Second  Comptroller  of  the  Treasury. 
The  Senate,  however,  refused  to  confirm  the  nomination,  but 
New  Hampshire  later  retaliated  by  electing  Hill  United  States 
Senator.  The  Patriot  was  thus  placed  in  a  strategic  position,  to 
start  the  war  upon  the  United  States  Bank.  Of  this  war,  more 
will  be  said  later  in  the  chapter. 

PART   PLAYED   BY   PRESS   IN   POLITICS 

The  way  party  organs  controlled  politics  in  New  York  was 
fairly  typical  of  that  in  other  States.  The  political  leaders  would 
have  a  conclave  at  Albany  at  which  they  would  decide  upon  a 
man  to  run  for  Governor.  Some  little  party  organ  in  a  rural 
section  would  then  be  selected  to  be  the  first  to  suggest  the  fit- 
ness of  such  a  man  for  the  position.  The  suggestion  would  then 
be  taken  up  by  other  rural  organs  in  various  parts  of  the  State. 
Such  a  nomination  would  be  warmly  seconded,  even  though 
coming  from  the  rural  sections,  by  the  party  organs  in  the  "  up- 
state cities."  The  chief  party  organ  at  Albany  would  then  sum 


150       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

up  the  situation  somewhat  as  follows:  "From  all  over  the  state 

comes  a  unanimous  demand  for  the  nomination  of . 

While  he  is  not  the  first  choice  of  this  newspaper,  there  seems 
to  be  such  an  overwhelming  demand  that  the  paper  is  forced  to 
yield  to  the  will  of  the  majority.  He  should  get  the  nomination 
and  should  receive  the  loyal  support  of  every  member  of  the 
party  at  the  coming  election."  A  cut-and-dried  editorial  in 
praise  of  the  man  would  then  be  inserted  in  the  Albany  organ. 
This  editorial  would  then  be  reprinted  with  other  kind  words  of 
commendation  by  all  the  party  organs  of  the  State.  The  party 
voter,  thus  convinced  of  the  universal  demand  of  the  man  as 
Governor,  would  promptly  fall  in  line.  The  party  press  had 
done  its  work  —  and  done  it  well. 

PARTY   PRESS   IN   ALBANY 

Since  the  newspapers  prior  to  1830  were  political  mouth- 
pieces and  were  filled  chiefly  with  political  squibs  and  reports 
of  stump  speeches,  Albany,  the  Capital  of  New  York  State,  was 
an  important  news  center.  The  Albany  Register,  established  in 
1788  by  John  and  Robert  Barber,  was  the  spokesman  for  De- 
Witt  Clinton.  When  he  left  office  the  paper  soon  after  "went 
into  his  big  ditch,"  the  Erie  Canal.  It  was  revived,  however, 
in  1818  by  Israel  W.  Clark  who  had  previously  published  The 
Watch  Tower,  a  Democratic  paper  started  at  Cherry  Valley, 
New  York,  in  1813,  but  removed  to  Cooperstown,  New  York, 
in  1814.  Under  his  editorship  it  fed  once  again  at  the  State 
printing  crib. 

Martin  Van  Buren  needed  some  one  to  preach  partisan  gos- 
pel in  Albany,  and  so  with  Jesse  Buel  in  the  pulpit  he  started 
The  Albany  Argus  on  January  1, 1813.  Van  Buren  knew  whereof 
he  spoke  when  he  asserted,  in  1823:  "Without  a  paper,  thus 
edited  at  Albany,  we  may  hang  our  harps  on  the  willows.  With 
it,  a  party  can  survive  a  thousand  convulsions."  In  that  year 
Edwin  Croswell  became  the  editor  of  The  Argus,  and  while  al- 
ways mindful  of  his  master's  voice  he  succeeded  in  injecting  a 
literary  taste  and  some  journalistic  skill  into  the  vulgarity  of  the 
acrimonious  political  journalism  of  the  time.  The  Argus  was  a 
member  of  the  famous  Van  Buren  triumvirate;  its  other  two 


PARTY  PRESS  PERIOD  151 

members  were  The  Globe,  edited  by  Blair  at  Washington,  and 
The  Enquirer,  edited  by  Ritchie  at  Richmond,  Virginia. 

THE   GREAT  NEWS   DISTRIBUTOR 

The  most  important  newspaper  of  tin*  era  was  not  a  daily,  or 
even  a  semi- weekly;  it  was  The  Weekly  Register  established  at 
Baltimore,  September  7,  1811,  by  Ezekiah  Niles,  an  editor  of 
The  Evening  Post  of  that  city.  In  its  pages  the  political  and 
economic  news  of  the  country  was  reported  with  a  fairness  and 
fidelity  which  characterized  no  other  paper  of  the  time.  It 
achieved  a  national  circulation  and  was  extensively  quoted  by 
other  papers.  In  fact,  it  was  a  sort  of  general  distributor  of  news 
for  its  contemporaries.  So  accurate  was  it  that  it  has  been 
quoted  by  historians  and  other  writers  upon  American  history 
more  than  any  other  single  newspaper  in  the  history  of  this 
country.  Niles  conducted  it  until  1836  when  it  was  continued 
by  his  son,  William  Ogden  Niles,  who  had  attempted  to  estab- 
lish The  Journal  at  Albany,  New  York,  —  not  the  present  Eve- 
ning Journal  of  that  city,  —  in  1825,  but  who,  upon  the  failure 
of  that  sheet,  became  associated  with  his  father  on  The  Register 
in  1827.  The  younger  Niles  conducted  the  paper  until  June  27, 
1849.  Its  motto  was,  "The  Past  — the  Present  — for  the  Fu- 
ture." The  entire  series  of  The  Weekly  Register  has  been  re- 
printed in  seventy-five  volumes  and  its  advertisements  told  the 
truth  when  they  asserted  that  no  library  was  complete  without 
it.  The  Register  was  discontinued  because  the  newspapers  of 
the  country  more  and  more  performed  the  same  service  for  their 
readers.  The  nearest  approach  to  The  Register  which  may  be 
found  to-day  is  The  Literary  Digest. 

NATIONAL  REPUBLICAN   ORGAN 

A  political  organ  which  attracted  much  attention  in  New  York 
was  The  American,  an  evening  paper  established  by  Charles 
King  March  3, 1819.  (Its  daily  edition  began  March  8, 1820.)  At 
the  start  The  American  was  distinctly  a  Tammany  sheet,  or, 
what  amounted  to  the  same  thing,  a  buck-tail  paper.  It  was  a 
loyal  supporter  of  Van  Buren,  but  later  was  forced  to  withdraw 
from  its  affiliation  with  the  Democratic  Party.  A  new  Tarn- 


152       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

many  sheet,  The  New  York  Patriot,  was  started  largely  through 
the  instrumentality  of  John  C.  Calhoun.  The  American  then 
became  a  National  Republican  paper  until  February  16,  1845, 
when  it  united  with  The  Courier  and  Enquirer.  During  all  this 
time  King  was  editor  of  The  American  and  after  the  merger 
took  place  became  associated  with  James  Watson  Webb  and 
Henry  J.  Raymond  in  the  editorial  direction  of  The  Courier  and 
Enquirer  until  he  was  called  to  the  presidency  of  Columbia  Col- 
lege. King  was  an  exceptionally  able  editorial  writer,  but  he 
failed  to  recognize  the  value  of  news  —  something  to  which  the 
penny  press  was  then  devoting  a  great  deal  of  attention.  The 
American  felt  quickly  this  competition  with  the  one-cent  papers 
and  on  May  1,  1843,  reduced  its  price  from  six  to  two  cents  per 
copy.  The  change  in  price,  however,  failed  to  increase  the  circu- 
lation and  the  paper  united  with  The  Courier  and  Enquirer,  as 
has  already  been  mentioned.  At  one  time,  however,  it  exerted 
great  political  influence  among  the  more  aristocratic  circles  of 
New  York  on  account  of  its  able  editorials. 

EMBREE  AND   GARRISON 

The  first  abolition  paper  did  not  appear  in  the  North,  but 
was  started  in  Tennessee  in  1820  —  ten  years  before  William 
Lloyd  Garrison  brought  out  The  Liberator  in  Boston.  On  April 
30,  1820,  Elihu  Embree,  a  member  of  the  religious  Society  of 
Friends,  started  in  Jonesboro,  Tennessee,  The  Emancipator,  a 
radical  exponent  of  the  abolition  cause.  One  of  the  cardinal 
principles  of  the  Society  of  Friends  was  that  no  member  in  good 
standing  could  ever  hold  a  person  in  bondage.  Embree  was  the 
son  of  a  Quaker  preacher  and  lived  in  Pennsylvania,  before  he 
came  to  Tennessee  to  make  his  home  in  Washington  County. 
Of  him  a  leading  Tennessee  paper  said  at  the  close  of  the  war: 
"He  was  the  stuff  of  which  martyrs  are  made."  After  teaching 
and  preaching  the  doctrine  of  emancipation  he  started  The 
Emancipator,  which  he  continued  for  eight  months  when  sick- 
ness and  death  finally  overcame  him.  In  every  possible  way  he 
sought  to  increase  the  circulation  of  this  paper.  To  the  Gov- 
ernor of  each  of  the  States  he  sent  a  copy  gratis.  The  Governors 
of  Georgia,  Alabama,  North  Carolina  returned  their  copies 


PARTY  PRESS  PERIOD  153 

sealed,  so  that  Embree  must  pay  letter  postage,  which,  in  the 
case  of  the  package  from  the  Governor  of  North  Carolina, 
amounted  to  one  dollar,  the  subscription  price  of  the  paper. 
When  other  men  to  whom  he  had  sent  sample  copies  turned  the 
same  trick,  he  gave  them  a  free  advertisement,  in  which,  after 
mentioning  what  had  been  done,  he  concluded  with  "Without 
entering  into  any  nice  dispositions  to  discover  whether  such 
conduct  is  any  better  than  pocket-picking,  I  leave  my  readers 
to  judge."  The  South  as  a  matter  of  strict  accuracy  has  of  late 
been  more  prompt  to  accept  the  honesty  of  purpose  of  this 
pioneer  of  the  abolition  of  slavery  than  has  been  the  North. 

In  striking  contrast  with  the  paper  just  mentioned  was  a 
daily  started  on  August  1,  1831,  at  Charleston,  South  Carolina. 
In  view  of  its  editorial  policy,  it  was  correctly  named  The  State's 
Rights  and  Free  Trade  Evening  Post.  It  had  at  the  head  of  its 
editorial  column  the  following  quotation  from  Thomas  Jeffer- 
son, "  Nullification  is  the  rightful  remedy,"  and  was  a  prophecy 
of  what  the  press  of  South  Carolina  was  to  be  at  a  later  time 
when  it  became  the  source  of  inspiration  for  the  secession  press. 

In  the  North  the  most  violent  advocate  of  the  abolition  of 
slavery  was  The  Liberator,  started  in  Boston  on  January  1,  1831. 
Its  editor,  William  Lloyd  Garrison,  was  one  of  the  most  fearless 
men  who  ever  sat  in  an  editorial  chair.  Threatened  repeatedly 
with  applications  of  tar  and  feathers,  mobbed  in  the  streets  of 
Boston,  hung  in  effigy  all  over  the  country,  he  kept  up  an  in- 
cessant fight  for  the  freedom  of  slaves  until  victory  was  his. 
Important  as  was  The  Liberator  in  American  history,  it  was 
not  distinctly  a  newspaper,  and  its  influence  has  been  told  over 
and  over  again  in  general  histories.  Such  works,  however,  have 
overlooked  the  fact  that  this  influence  was  exerted  very  often 
through  the  editorials  in  the  secular  press  which  commented 
either  pro  or  con  about  the  contents  of  The  Liberator.  The 
coarseness  of  the  editors'  invectives  was  characteristic  of  the 
period.  The  Liberator  was  discontinued  on  December  29,  1865. 

WANDEKING  JEW  JOURNALIST 

One  of  the  most  interesting  characters  in  the  history  of 
American  journalism  was  Mordecai  Noah,  a  journalist  of  fertile 


154       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

imagination.  He  conceived  the  idea  of  bringing  the  scattered 
tribes  of  Israel  to  an  American  settlement ;  he  also  believed  that 
the  Indians  were  descendants  of  the  lost  tribes  and  proposed  that 
a  certain  part  of  the  land  should  be  set  aside  for  them.  He  had 
other  idiosyncracies  of  which  it  is  no  editorial  fib  to  say  that 
they  were  too  numerous  to  mention.  One  of  them,  however,  de- 
serves special  notice :  he  seemed  to  want  to  edit  as  many  papers 
as  possible.  He  began  his  newspaper  career  in  1810  by  editing 
The  City  Gazette  in  Charleston,  South  Carolina.  When  Tam- 
many Hall,  quite  a  different  organization  from  the  present  one 
of  that  name,  repudiated  its  organ  and  established  another,  The 
National  Advocate  secured  Noah  as  the  second  editor  of  that 
paper.  In  1826,  after  a  quarrel  with  the  publishers,  Noah  started 
another  paper  with  the  same  name.  Prevented  by  legal  steps 
in  this  attempt  to  have  two  papers  of  the  same  name,  he  called 
his  paper  Noah's  New  York  National  Advocate.  Again  getting 
into  legal  difficulties,  he  made  another  change  and  called  the 
sheet  The  New  York  Enquirer.  When  this  paper  was  merged 
in  1829  with  The  Morning  Courier,  Noah  still  kept  up  an  edi- 
torial connection  with  the  union  as  its  associate  editor.  In  1834 
he  established  The  New  York  Evening  Star,  a  Whig  organ  to 
support  William  Henry  Harrison.  When  The  Star  united  with 
The  Commercial  Advertiser,  Noah  became  editor  of  The  Morn- 
ing Star.  In  1842  Noah  edited  a  Tyler  organ  in  New  York  called 
The  Union.  It  lasted  about  a  year,  and  then  he  commenced  in 
1843  Noah's  Weekly  Messenger  which  after  a  short  time  united 
with  The  Sunday  Times.  He  remained  editor  of  this  paper  until 
his  death  in  1851. 

FIRST   STAR  REPORTER 

*^  Henry  Ingraham  Blake,  the  Father  of  American  Reporting, 

belonged  io  tLIs  period. ""Connected  with  The  New  England  Pal- 
ladium, a  Boston  paper  started  on  January  1,  1793,  as  The 
Massachusetts  Mercury,  but  later,  in  January,  1801,  changed  to 
The  Mercury  and  New  England  Palladium,  he  was  the  first  to 
go  after  news  without  waiting  for  items  to  come  to  the  news- 
paper office.  Though  he  occasionally  reported  local  matters  in 
and  around  the  city,  he  made  his  reputation  as  a  gatherer  of  ship 


PARTY  PRESS  PERIOD  155 

news.  Newspaper  tradition  in  Boston  still  asserts  that  he  knew 
the  names  of  the  owner,  the  captain,  and  most  of  the  crew  of 
every  boat  that  docked  in  Boston  Harbor  in  his  day.  Instead 
of  going  to  the  coffee-houses  to  get  the  news  retold  there  by  sea 
captains,  he  would  go  down  to  the  wharves,  get  into  a  boat,  and 
often  go  out  alone  to  meet  the  incoming  vessels  without  regard 
to  what  the  weather  was  or  to  what  time  of  day  the  vessel 
would  dock.  After  getting  the  news  from  the  captain  or  some 
member  of  the  crew,  he  would  rush  back  to  the  office  of  The 
Palladium  and  there,  with  the  help  of  his  wonderful  memory 
and  by  a  few  notes  on  his  cuffs  or  on  his  finger  nails,  he  would 
put  the  matter  into  type  as  he  sang  to  himself  in  a  monotone. 
If  the  item  was  unusually  important  he  never  hesitated  to  stop 
the  press  of  the  paper  in  order  to  secure  its  insertion.  In  this 
way  he  secured  for  the  Marine  Department  of  The  Palladium  a 
reputation  which  put  the  shipping  news  of  the  other  Boston 
papers  in  the  "  also-ran "  column.  Scant  justice  has  been  done 
to  " Harry"  Blake,  who  was  the  father  of  reporting  in  the  mod- 
ern sense  of  this  term.  After  he  left  The  Palladium,  the  paper 
lost  its  most  valuable  asset  and  soon  began  to  lose  its  subscribers, 
who  no  longer  found  its  ship  news  worth  reading.  The  Palla- 
dium passed  through  various  hands  until  it  became  in  1840  a 
part  of  The  Boston  Daily  Advertiser,  which  had  been  started  on 
March  3,  1813,  and  was  the  first  daily  paper  of  any  importance 
in  New  England. 

POULSON   OF   PHILADELPHIA 

The  grand  old  man  of  the  period  was  Zachariah  Poulson,  Jr., 
the  editor  and  publisher  of  Poulson's  American  Daily  Advertiser 
in  Philadelphia.  His  life  links  the  journalism  of  the  Early  Re- 
public with  the  Era  of  the  Penny  Press.  In  September,  1800, 
Poulson  purchased  for  ten  thousand  dollars  The  American  Daily 
Advertiser,  the  first  daily  paper  in  America,  and  gave  it  his  own 
name  and  continued  to  publish  it  until  December,  1839,  when 
he  sold  it  to  the  owners  of  the  youngest  Philadelphia  daily,  The 
North  American.  When  his  paper  was  merged  with  The  North 
American,  The  Saturday  Evening  Post  published  this  tribute  to 
Poulson:  ''No  man  probably  in  this  country  has  ever  enjoyed  so 


156       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

undisturbed  a  connection  with  a  newspaper  as  Mr.  Poulson. 
Commencing  at  a  time  when  competition  for  public  favor  was 
unknown,  he  has  strictly  pursued  the  even  tenor  of  his  way, 
without  departing  from  the  rules  which  he  adopted  in  the  out- 
set of  his  course.  While  his  younger  brethren  were  struggling 
and  striving  with  each  other  —  adopting  all  means  to  secure 
patronage  —  enlarging  their  sheets,  and  employing  new  and 
extraordinary  means  to  win  success  —  he  looked  calmly  on,  and 
continued  as  he  commenced,  nothing  doubting  that  his  old 
and  tried  friends  would  adhere  to  him.  Nor  was  he  disappointed 
in  this  expectation,  since  up  to  the  moment  of  his  dissolution 
The  Daily  Advertiser  has  neither  abated  in  usefulness,  interest, 
or  profit."  Mr.  Poulson's  greatest  contribution  to  American 
journalism  was  the  training  which  he  gave  to  a  large  num- 
ber of  journalists  who  later  went  east  and  west  to  establish 
papers  upon  the  sound  principles  learned  while  working  on 
Paulson's  Daily  Advertiser.  Though  a  strong  Whig,  Poulson 
had  a  natural  propensity  to  look  at  political  questions  from  all 
angles,  and  in  his  political  criticism  he  was  unquestionably 
honest  and  remarkably  free  both  by  conviction  and  by  senti- 
ment from  using  the  press  to  advance  personal  aspirations. 

UNITED   STATES  BANK   AND   PRESS 

Notwithstanding  what  academic  historians  may  say  on  the 
subject,  one  of  the  worst  corruptors  of  the  press  toward  the  close 
of  the  period  was  the  Bank  of  the  United  States  at  Philadelphia. 
Its  directors  knew  that  its  charter  was  soon  to  expire  and  began 
to  count  its  friends  in  the  press.  In  spite  of  its  best  efforts  it 
encountered  so  much  newspaper  opposition  and  so  little  favor- 
able comment  that  it  finally  passed,  on  March  11,  1831,  a  reso- 
lution authorizing  its  president,  Nicholas  Biddle,  to  print  what 
he  chose  to  defend  the  Bank  and  to  pay  for  the  same  without 
accountability.  Between  that  date  and  the  end  of  1834  Biddle 
spent  "without  vouchers"  $29,600  —  a  sum  that  would  go 
much  farther  in  those  days  than  now  in  corrupting  the  press. 
When  Biddle  was  accused  of  using  the  whole  press  of  the  coun- 
try to  aid  him  in  his  fight  with  President  Jackson  and  was 
charged  with  being  criminally  profuse  in  his  accommodations 


PARTY  PRESS  PERIOD  157 

to  newspapers  which  favored  a  new  charter  for  the  Bank,  he 
pointed  to  a  number  of  papers  to  which  loans  had  been  made  and 
which,  when  the  notes  were  given,  were  opposed  to  rechartering 
the  Bank.  Among  these  were  The  Washington  Telegraph,  edited 
by  General  Duff  Green,  and  The  New  York  Courier  and  En- 
quirer, edited  by  Mordecai  Manuel  Noah  and  James  Watson 
Webb. 

At  the  time  Green  applied  for  the  loan  to  The  Telegraph  he 
intimated  that  the  accommodation  should  carry  with  it  no 
change  in  the  editorial  policy  of  his  paper.  To  this  Biddle  re- 
plied: "The  Bank  is  glad  to  have  friends  from  conviction;  but 
seeks  none  from  interest.  For  myself,  I  love  the  freedom  of  the 
press  too  much  to  complain  of  its  occasional  injustice  to  me." 
He  even  went  so  far  as  to  indicate  that  he  would  be  willing  to 
write  on  the  notes,  "Editorial  indorsement  of  the  Bank  not 
necessary." 

Nevertheless,  after  the  loan  The  Telegraph  did  change  its 
policy  and  came  out  for  the  Bank.  When  word  of  the  change 
was  taken  to  President  Jackson  he  wrote  —  in  an  unpublished 
letter:  "I  have  barely  time  to  remark  that  the  conduct  of  Gen- 
eral D.  Green  is  such  as  I  suspected.  .  .  .  The  truth  is  he  has 
professed  to  me  to  be  heart  and  soul  against  the  Bank  but  his 
idol"  —  John  C.  Calhoun  to  whom  Green  owed  his  position  on 
The  Telegraph  —  "  controls  him  as  much  as  the  shewman  does 
his  puppets,  and  we  must  get  another  organ  to  announce  the 
policy  and  defend  the  administration,  in  his  hands  it  is  more 
injured  than  by  all  the  opposition."  The  new  "organ"  was 
The  Washington  Globe  started  December  7,  1830,  and  edited  by 
Francis  P.  Blair.  Political  office-holders,  in  a  none  too  delicate 
way  were  given  to  understand  that  they  should  subscribe  to 
The  Globe  and  to  do  everything  in  their  power  to  promote  its 
circulation. 

No  sooner  was  The  Globe  revolving  nicely  than  one  of  the  offi- 
cers of  the  Bank  offered  to  pay  Mr.  Blair  whatever  might  be 
the  charge  for  the  insertion  of  a  report  prepared  by  Biddle. 
Blair  refused  to  accept  any  compensation,  but  did  print,  as  a 
public  document,  the  statement  prepared  by  the  Bank.  Later 
a  friend  of  the  Bank  left  with  a  member  of  President  Jackson ;s 


158       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Cabinet  a  large  check  to  be  given  to  Mr.  Blair  "as  an  expres- 
sion of  the  respect  the  donor  entertained  for  the  labors  of  the 
editor  of  The  Globe."  The  check  was  returned  and  Blair  con- 
tinued his  attacks  on  the  Bank. 

In  New  York  The  Courier  and  Enquirer  in  a  savage  and  al- 
most brutal  attack,  had  charged  the  Bank  with  "furnishing  capi- 
tal and  thought  at  the  same  moment,"  with  "buying  men  and 
votes  as  cattle  in  the  market,"  and  with  "withering,  as  by  a 
subtle  poison  the  liberty  of  the  press."  After  these  charges  had 
been  made,  the  Bank  of  the  United  States  continued  to  loan 
money  to  The  Courier  and  Enquirer  until  the  notes  of  that  news- 
paper totaled  $52,975.  When  the  press  published  the  figures 
the  Bank  attempted  to  justify  its  position  by  claiming  that  the 
loans  were  considered  a  "safe  and  legitimate  business  trans- 
action." In  1833  notes  for  part  of  the  paper's  indebtedness 
($18,600)  were  protested  by  the  Bank:  two  years  later  The  Cou- 
rier and  Enquirer  offered  to  settle  for  "ten  cents  on  the  dollar." 
James  Gordon  Bennett,  who  was  at  the  time  connected  with 
The  Courier  and  Enquirer,  once  made  this  resume  of  the  situa- 
tion for  that  newspaper  in  particular  and  for  others  in  general : 
"The  Courier  and  Enquirer  was  in  some  financial  difficulty  at 
the  period  the  war  was  made  by  the  Bank,  and  Mr.  Noah  when 
he  saw  the  breeches  pocket  of  Mr.  Biddle  open,  entered  it  imme- 
diately and  presented  the  chief  exemplar  of  inconsistency  and 
tergiversation." 

In  defense  of  the  Bank  it  may  be  said  that  the  institution 
was  fighting  a  life  or  death  battle  and  was  often  unjustly  at- 
tacked by  a  bitter  and  vindictive  opposition  press.  The  Bank 
was  forced,  so  its  defenders  asserted,  to  fight  enemies  who  held 
out  to  editors  the  appointments  to  office :  it  could  only  use  in  the 
conflict  such  means  as  it  possessed  —  loans  and  subsidies  to 
newspapers. 

Thomas  H.  Benton,  the  spokesman  for  Jackson  in  the  war 
against  the  Bank,  charged  that  the  institution  was  criminally 
profuse  in  its  accommodations  to  editors  who  favored  the  grant- 
ing of  a  new  charter.  In  the  newspaper  war  which  grew  out  of 
the  conflict  The  New  York  Courier  and  Enquirer  found  itself 
attacked  for  criticizing  the  Bank  while  at  the  same  time  being 


PARTY  PRESS  PERIOD  159 

a  debtor.  At  various  times,  as  already  mentioned,  it  borrowed 
sums  until  its  total  indebtedness  amounted  to  $52,975.  To  jus- 
tify this  position  The  Courtier  and  Enquirer  published  a  state- 
ment as  to  its  financial  condition.  Whether  the  condition  of  the 
paper  was  sufficient  to  warrant  such  a  loan  is  open  to  discussion. 
The  statement,  however,  did  show  a  number  of  interesting  facts 
about  publishing  a  blanket  sheet.  According  to  the  memoran- 
dum compiled  by  Colonel  Webb,  there  were  3300  daily  sub- 
scribers who  paid  an  annual  subscription  price  of  $10;  2300 
hundred  weekly  or  semi-weekly  subscribers  whose  average  sub- 
scriptions amounted  to  $4.50;  275  yearly  advertisers  at  the 
flat  rate  of  $30.  The  annual  gross  income  amounted  to  $60,750, 
from  which  the  annual  expenses  of  $35,000,  when  subtracted, 
showed  a  profit  —  at  least  on  the  books  —  of  $25,750.  Accord- 
ing to  Colonel  Webb,  The  Courier  and  Enquirer  was  worth  fully 
$150,000.  If  it  were,  it  steadily  lost  in  value,  for  at  a  later 
period  it  found  itself  unable  to  meet  expenses  and  was  finally 
absorbed  by  The  World. 

BULLETIN  BOARDS  —  THEN  AND  NOW 

Bulletin  boards  on  which  a  resume*  of  the  news  was  posted 
first  appeared  during  the  second  decade  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury. By  1815  The  New  York  Mercantile  Advertiser  and  The 
New  York  Gazette  were  posting  on  boards  nailed  to  their  front 
doors  brief  statements  of  the  more  important  items  which  came 
to  their  offices.  Other  papers  in  distant  cities  soon  followed  the 
example  set  by  the  New  York  papers  and  the  bulletin  board  be- 
came an  established  adjunct  of  American  journalism.  The 
Mexican  War  and  the  War  of  the  States  increased  their  useful- 
ness. At  one  time  most  of  the  provincial  press  got  its  news  of 
outside  happenings  from  correspondents  who  visited  these 
bulletin  boards  and  then  forwarded  the  contents  to  their  re- 
spective papers  first  by  letter  and  then  later  by  wire.  Not  until 
the  close  of  the  nineteenth  century  did  these  pony  reports  for 
the  smaller  dailies  completely  disappear.  The  bulletin  board 
has  possibly  reached  its  highest  development  in  reporting  ath- 
letic events.  Because  of  the  great  interest  taken  by  the  Ameri- 
can public  in  baseball,  the  bulletin  board  has  frequently  blocked 


160       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

city  streets  with  its  crowd  of  interested  spectators  who  wanted 
the  news  even  before  it  could  appear  in  "Sporting  Extras."  The 
speed  with  which  news  has  been  told  by  metropolitan  bulletin 
boards  is  one  of  the  most  remarkable  mechanical  achievements 
of  American  journalism.  In  a  baseball  game  when  the  ball  has 
been  batted  out  into  the  field  and  has  been  caught  by  the  center- 
fielder,  this  fact  has  been  recorded  on  a  bulletin  board  fifteen 
hundred  miles  away  from  the  game  before  the  ball  could  reach 
the  home  plate  in  an  attempt  to  put  out  a  man  running  bases 
after  the  fly  had  been  caught. 

PRINTING-PRESSES   OF  PERIOD 

During  1822  steam  was  first  used  in  America  as  the  motive 
power  to  run  a  printing-press :  this  was  seven  years  before  steam 
turned  the  wheel  of  the  first  locomotive  in  England.  Daniel 
Treadwell  of  Boston  built  the  pioneer  power  press:  its  frame  was 
constructed  of  wood  and  its  mechanism  was  clumsy  —  but  it 
worked.  Another  Yankee,  Isaao  Adams,  perfected  the  press 
and  made  it  more  practical.  Called  to  New  York  in  1827  to 
repair  a  Treadwell  press,  he  soon  saw  the  possibilities  of  im- 
provement and  in  1830  he  successfully  put  his  own  press  on  the 
market.  Later,  the  demand  was  so  great  that  he  took  his  brother, 
Seth  Adams,  into  partnership.  The  Adams  press  differed  from 
the  hand-press  in  that,  after  the  type  had  been  put  on  a  flat 
bed,  "the  bed  was  raised  and  lowered  by  straightening  and 
bending  a  toggle  joint  by  means  of  a  cam,  thus  giving  the 
impression  upon  the  iron  platen  fixed  above  it"  —to  quote  a 
technical  description.  Isaac  Adams  "automatized  the  printing- 
press."  Automatically  his  press  inked  the  type;  automatically 
it  drew  the  sheet  between  the  type-bed  and  the  platen  for  the 
impression;  automatically  it  took  the  sheet  now  printed  from 
the  type-bed;  automatically  it  "flirted,"  after  registering,  the 
sheet  to  a  pile  by  a  "fly"  invented  by  Adams  and  still  used  on 
cylinder  presses.  The  various  patents  of  Adams  passed  in  1858 
to  Robert  Hoe,  who  by  that  time  had  made  many  improvements 
—  but  those  make  a  story  for  another  chapter.  About  one  thou- 
sand sheets  per  hour  was  the  maximum  speed  of  the  improved 
Adams  press. 


PARTY  PRESS  PERIOD  161 

Up  to  the  close  of  the  period  the  use  of  steam,  however,  was 
still  in  the  experimental  state.  Hand-power  from  "  crank  men," 
who  turned  a  large  wheel,  was  sufficient  to  print  the  papers  even 
of  the  daily  journals.  Frederick  Koenig,  a  Saxon,  assisted  by 
Thomas  Bensley,  a  London  printer,  succeeded  in  printing  from 
a  revolving  cylinder  in  1812.  To  have  a  cylinder  roll  over  a 
type-bed  was  bound  to  be  faster  than  to  press  an  iron  platen 
against  it.  Robert  Hoe,  who  had  started  to  make  printing- 
presses  in  New  York  in  1805,  saw  the  advantage  of  the  changes 
and  began  the  construction  of  cylinder  presses.  In  the  earlier 
models  that  part  of  the  cylinder  not  used  in  making  the  impres- 
sion was  " trimmed  down"  to  allow  the  type  to  pass  back  and 
forth  without  touching  it.  The  daily  papers  used  the  hand- 
turned,  large-cylinder  presses  to  print  their  editions.  The  old- 
fashioned  hand  variety  still  sufficed  for  provincial  newspapers 
of  small  circulation. 

POSTAL  REGULATIONS  OF  PERIOD 

Until  the  war  increased  the  operating  expenses  of  the  Postal 
Department,  newspapers  circulated  under  the  provisions  of  the 
first  Federal  Postal  Act  of  1793.  Complaints  about  poor  service 
were  frequent  in  appearance,  but  nothing  was  done  except  to 
increase  the  postal  routes.  To  increase  the  postage  was  the  last 
thing  the  newspapers  wanted,  yet  the  first  change  made  just  such 
provisions. 

From  February  1,  1815,  to  March  31,  1816,  postage  on  news- 
papers was  increased  fifty  per  cent  to  raise  revenue  on  account 
of  war  expenses.  In  April  of  this  year  (1816),  in  spite  of  the  re- 
duction on  letter  postage,  it  was  continued  with  the  exception 
that  postage  would  be  reduced  to  one  cent  on  papers  delivered 
in  the  same  State  in  which  they  were  printed  even  though  car- 
ried more  than  one  hundred  miles.  By  an  act  of  1825  newspapers 
were  required  to  pay  one  quarter  of  the  annual  postage  in  ad- 
vance. 

A  bill  for  the  abolition  of  postage  on  newspapers  was  intro- 
duced in  1832.  The  committee  on  Public  Offices  to  which  it 
was  referred  reported  adversely  on  May  19,  1832.  In  its  report 
it  said:  — 


162       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM' 

The  postage  on  newspapers  is  not  a  tax.  It  is  no  more  in  the  nature 
of  a  tax  than  is  the  freight  paid  on  merchandise.  It  is  money  paid  for  a 
fair  and  full  equivalent  in  service  rendered,  and  paid  by  the  person  for 
whose  benefit  and  by  whose  venture  the  service  is  performed.  The  law 
does  not  require  newspapers  to  be  distributed  by  the  mails.  It  only 
extends  to  their  proprietors  that  privilege  when  it  becomes  their  interest 
to  avail  themselves  of  it  in  preference  to  other  and  more  uncertain  and 
expensive  modes  of  conveyance.  There  does  not  appear  any  sufficient 
reason  why  the  public  should  pay  for  transporting  printers'  articles  or 
merchandise  to  a  distant  market  any  more  than  the  productions  of  other 
kinds  of  industry.  In  all  cases  the  expense  must  be  defrayed  either  by 
a  tax  or  by  the  person  for  whom  the  service  is  performed;  and  the 
committee  cannot  perceive  a  more  equitable  way  than  for  each  one  to 
pay  for  the  services  actually  rendered  to  himself  for  his  own  benefit  and 
by  his  own  order. 

Considerable  complaint  had  been  made  by  the  papers  pub- 
lished outside  of  the  larger  cities  that  the  postal  laws  discrimi- 
nated in  favor  of  the  metropolitan  newspapers. 

As  newspapers  increased  in  the  amount  of  news  printed,  they 
did  not  add  more  pages,  but  simply  increased  the  size  of  the 
sheet.  The  result  was  the  publication  of  those  mammoth  news- 
papers which  were  commonly  called  "blanket  sheets";  some  of 
them  in  fact  were  about  the  size  of  a  bed  quilt.  By  the  postal 
laws  a  small  folio  paper  in  the  country  paid  the  same  rate  as 
these  larger  papers  printed  in  New  York. 

CONDITIONS  AFFECTING  PRESS 

The  " reign  of  Andrew  Jackson"  was  an  important  one  in  the 
history  of  American  journalism.  The  population  had  increased 
to  over  twelve  millions  —  more  than  double  what  it  was  at  the 
opening  of  the  century.  The  area  was  more  than  twice  what 
it  was  in  Jefferson's  day.  The  chapter  on  "The  Beginnings  of 
Journalism  in  States  and  Territories"  not  numbered  among  the 
thirteen  original  colonies  shows  how  the  printing-press  had  fol- 
lowed the  trail  blazed  tjy  the  settler  to  his  pioneer  home.  The 
frontier  newspaper  was  but  a  repetition  of  the  early  journalism 
on  the  Atlantic  Coast.  In  spite  of  migration  westward  the  popu- 
lation in  the  cities  had  increased,  due  to  the  development  of 
new  industries  and  to  the  extension  of  the  merchant  marine. 


PARTY  PRESS  PERIOD  163 

Schools  and  colleges  sprang  up  to  supplement  the  work  of  older 
institutions.  Courses  both  in  the  grammar  and  in  the  high 
schools  were  lengthened.  Postal  routes  were  extended.  Stage 
lines  were  numerous  and  even  the  railroads  started  to  carry 
passengers.  Journalism,  which  is  ever  linked  with  the  social 
and  economic  growth  of  a  country,  was  bound  to  be  affected 
most  materially  by  these  changes.  Education  made  more  people 
readers  of  newspapers  and  improved  transportation  facilities 
permitted  not  only  a  quicker,  but  also  a  larger  distribution  of 
the  papers.  Popularizing  the  newspaper,  however,  came  from 
the  reduction  in  cost.  Journalism  never  fully  came  to  its  own 
until  a  newspaper  could  be  purchased  for  a  penny.  Until  Jack- 
son's Administration  only  the  wealthy  could  afford  a  daily 
paper.  Till  then  it  was  a  mark  of  distinction  to  subscribe  to  a 
newspaper,  but  after  the  day  of  the  cheap  press  no  such  condi- 
tion ever  obtained. 


CHAPTER  XI 

'BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES 

1783—1832 

r>  BEFORE  taking  up  the  origin  of  the  penny  press,  some  notice 
must  be  paid  to  the  pioneer  printers  who  had  established  news- 
papers in  the  States  and  Territories  not  included  in  the  thirteen 
original  colonies.  Sons  and  apprentices  of  Massachusetts  print- 
ers, especially  from  Boston,  had  left  their  cases  and,  taking 
old  hand-presses  and  fonts  of  type,  had  founded  papers  in  Ver- 
mont and  Maine,  settlements  hardly  yet  populated  enough 
to  support  such  enterprises.  Others,  traveling  along  the  old 
Mohawk  Trail,  had  gone  westward.  Adventurous  printers  from 
New  York  and  Pennsylvania  had  taken  the  Overland  Trail 
through  Pittsburgh  into  the  Ohio  Valley.  Here,  putting  their  out- 
fits on  flatboats  and  into  dug-outs,  they  had  floated  to  Missis- 
sippi frontiers.  The  political  plum  of  Printer  to  the  Territory 
was  shaken  into  the  leather  apron  of  several  and  the  rude  log 
cabin  at  various  outposts  served,  as  in  the  Colonial  Period, 
equally  as  well  for  a  post-office  as  for  a  print-shop.  Occasion- 
ally the  frontier  journalists  were  politicians  who  sought  to  re- 
peat old  tricks  in  new  fields.  Not  infrequently  lawyers  who 
found  their  professional  services  not  yet  needed  in  a  country, 
where  every  man  was  practically  a  law  unto  himself,  were  drafted 
from  the  bar  —  take  either  meaning  of  the  word  —  into  edi- 
torial chairs.  In  a  volume  of  this  size  mention  can  be  made  only 
of  those  printers  who  founded  the  first  papers.  Unembarrassed 
by  stamp  taxes  and  unhindered  by  censorship  of  the  press,  they 
faced  other  problems  in  transporting  their  plants  and  in  getting 
their  supply  of  white  paper  equal  in  every  respect  to  the  diffi- 
culties of  the  pioneers  on  the  Atlantic  Coast.  Individual  hard- 
ships are  given  in  the  accounts  of  some  papers,  not  because  they 
were  unusual,  but  because  they  were  typical.  Without  these  pio- 
neer sheets  to  link  the  Territories  and  later  the  States  together, 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  .  165 

it  is  extremely  doubtful  if  a  central  form  of  government  would 
have  survived.  In  Florida  and  in  Louisiana  newspapers  had 
been  started  when  these  Territories  were  not  yet  part  of  the 
United  States.  The  beginnings  of  journalism  in  these  two,  there- 
fore, may  first  be  considered  before  taking  the  others. 

EARLY  JOURNALISM   IN   FLORIDA 

Before  the  Revolutionary  Period  closed  the  first  newspaper 
had  already  appeared  in  Florida.  It  was  called  The  East  Florida 
Gazette  and  was  published  at  St.  Augustine  by  William  Charles 
Wells.  No  issues  of  The  East  Florida  Gazette,  so  far  as  can  be 
learned,  have  been  preserved,  but  such  a  paper  was  mentioned 
several  times  by  a  few  Southern  papers  of  the  Early  Republic 
Period.  Its  severe  criticism  of  "the  good  people  of  the  States" 
was  especially  annoying  to  its  contemporaries  in  those  former 
colonies  which  had  become  integral  parts  of  the  United  States. 
Associated  later  with  William  Wells  in  publishing  The  Gazette 
was,  in  all  probability,  his  brother  John,  who  had  printed  The 
Royal  Gazette  at  Charleston,  South  Carolina.  For  this  offense, 
he  was  ordered  by  State  authorities  to  leave  and  went  to  St. 
Augustine,  where  he  helped  his  brother  to  print  books  and  pos- 
sibly The  Gazette.  Florida  being  sparsely  settled  did  not  have 
another  paper  till  late  in  the  Party  Press  Period  when  The 
Weekly  Floridian  was  established  in  1828  at  Tallahassee. 

FRENCH   AND   ENGLISH   PAPERS   IN   LOUISIANA 

Among  the  refugees  at  San  Domingo  who  settled  at  New 
Orleans  was  L.  Puclot.  After  much  difficulty  he  succeeded  in  get- 
ting the  consent  of  Governor  Carondelet  to  print  in  French  the 
Moniteur  de  la  Louisiane,  which  first  appeared  on  March  3, 
1794.  A  year  later  J.  B.  L.  Fontaine  became  its  editor  and  he 
continued  to  hold  that  position  until  1814,  during  much  of  which 
time  he  was  also  the  publisher.  In  1797  the  Moniteur  became 
the  official  State  paper  and  in  its  pages  are  to  be  found  most 
of  the  facts  we  know  about  the  early  history  of  Louisiana,  con- 
taining as  it  does  "All  the  official  documents,  Spanish,  French 
and  American  which  relate  to  the  changes  of  government  and  all 
officially  issued  territorial  laws,  decisions  of  the  city  council, 


166       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

municipal  notices,  consumption  of  flour  by  bakers,  bills  of 
mortality  and  the  list  of  baptisms  and  marriages,  etc."  The 
last  issue  of  the  paper,  Number  1641,  was  on  July  2,  1814.  Two 
days  later  Fontaine  died.  The  Louisiana  Gazette  on  July  7  of  that 
year  said  of  him:  "He  was  an  enemy  to  the  revolutionary 
principles  that  so  long  deluged  his  native  country  in  blood,  and 
often  (to  his  intimate  friends)  expressed  the  hope  that  he 
should  live  to  hear  of  a  Bourbon  being  on  the  throne  of  France. 
His  hope  was  realized  and  he  departed  in  peace,  we  trust  to  play 
his  part  in  another  and  a  better  world." 

Le  Courrier  du  Vendredi  was  started  at  New  Orleans  on  May 
26,  1785,  without  the  name  of  its  editor  in  the  imprint.  It  was 
the  precursor  of  The  Louisiana  Courier,  a  tri-weekly  published 
in  French  and  English.  Le  Telegraphe,  established  December 
10,  1803,  was  another  weekly  newspaper  originally  published  all 
in  French,  but  later  a  tri-weekly  printed  part  in  French  and  part 
in  English.  In  its  second  issue  it  printed  the  terms  of  treaty  by 
which  Louisiana  became  a  part  of  the  United  States.  Formal 
possession  of  the  Territory  was  taken  December  20,  1803. 

The  Louisiana  Gazette,  the  first  paper  in  New  Orleans  to  be 
printed  in  English,  was  established  on  July  27,  1804.  Published 
twice  a  week,  its  editor  was  John  Mowry.  He  started  with  only 
nineteen  subscribers  who  paid  an  annual  subscription  of  ten 
dollars.  Several  attempts  were  made  to  turn  The  Gazette  into  a 
daily  newspaper:  the  first  was  on  April  3,  1810.  Possibly  the 
reason  that  these  attempts  were  not  very  successful  was  due 
partly  to  the  fact  that  editors  did  not  pay  enough  attention  to 
local  news  and  also  to  the  large  number  of  residents  who  could 
not  read  English. 

THE   CALL   FROM   VERMONT 

In  the  rooms  of  the  Vermont  Historical  Society  at  Mont- 
pelier  is  still  preserved  the  press  on  which  was  printed  the 
first  newspaper  in  that  State.  The  claim  has  been  made  that 
this  press  was  the  first  to  be  used  in  the  English-speaking  colo- 
nies of  North  America  and  that  it  did  the  best  work  in  a  me- 
chanical way,  when  set  up  in  the  house  of  Henry  Dunster,  the 
first  president  of  Harvard  College.  But  at  any  rate,  it  printed 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  167 

at  Westminster,  Vermont,  on  February  12,  1781,  Volume  I, 
Number  1,  of  The  Vermont  Gazette,  or  Green  Mountain  Post-Boy. 
From  that  day  dates  the  beginning  of  journalism  in  what  is  now 
the  State  of  Vermont.  The  paper,  17  x  12J,  had  for  its  motto :  — 

Pliant  as  Reeds  where  Streams  of  Freedom  glide; 
Firm  as  the  Hills  to  stem  Oppression's  Tide. 

Printed  by  Judah  Paddock  Spooner  and  Timothy  Green,  it 
lasted  until  the  beginning  of  the  year  1783. 

The  second  paper  was  at  Bennington:  it  bore  the  name  of 
The  Vermont  Gazette,  or  Freeman's  Depository,  and  first  appeared 
June  5,  1783,  from  the  shop  of  Anthony  Haswell  and  David 
Russell.  On  January  5,  1797,  it  was  continued  as  The  Tablet  of 
the  Times.  In  spite  of  numerous  changes  both  in  name  and 
ownership  it  survived  until  1880.  Possibly  its  period  of  greatest 
influence  was  during  the  days  when  it  advocated  Andrew  Jack- 
son for  President  of  the  United  States. 

George  Hough  bought  the  press  and  type  used  to  print  the 
first  paper  at  Westminster,  took  in  as  partner  Alden  Spooner,  who 
was  a  brother  of  Judah,  and  brought  out  at  Windsor  on  August 
7,  1783,  the  third  paper,  The  Vermont  Journal  and  the  Universal 
Advertiser.  It  bore  the  motto  — 

From  Realms  far  distant  and  from  Climes  unknown. 
We  make  the  Knowledge  of  Mankind  your  own; 

and  survived  until  about  1834. 

Anthony  Haswell  printed  on  June  25,  1792,  at  Rutland  the 
first  issue  of  the  fourth  newspaper,  The  Rutland  Herald,  or 
Rutland  Courier.  Its  immediate  successor  was  The  Rutland 
Herald,  or  Vermont  Mercury,  first  published  December  8,  1794, 
by  Samuel  Williams  and  a  clergyman  of  the  same  name.  It 
had  the  longest  life  of  any  paper  in  the  State  and  is  still 
published. 

ORIGIN   OF   JOURNALISM   IN   MAINE 

January  1, 1785,  saw  the  first  newspaper  established  in  Maine: 
called  The  Palmouth  Gazette,  it  was  published  by  Benjamin 
Titcomb,  who  had  learned  his  trade  in  a  shop  at  Newburyport, 
Massachusetts,  and  Thomas  B.  Wait,  who  had  been  connected 


168       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

with  The  Boston  Chronicle.  Titcomb  retired  from  the  paper  with 
the  issue  of  February  16,  1786,  and  Wait  changed  the  title  to 
The  Cumberland  Gazette  on  April  7, 1786.  When  part  of  Falmouth 
was  incorporated  as  Portland  on  July  4,  1786,  the  latter  town 
soon  appeared  in  the  imprint,  but  on  January  2,  1792,  the  title 
was  changed,  to  avoid  confusion  with  another  Portland  paper 
of  a  similar  name,  to  The  Eastern  Herald.  In  1796  John  K.  Baker 
bought  the  paper  and  consolidated  it  with  The  Gazette  of  Maine, 
on  September  3, 1796.  An  attempt  was  made  to  make  the  paper 
a  semi- weekly,  but  failed:  subscribers  would  not  pay  the  in- 
sreased  cost.  On  March  5, 1798,  Baker  admitted  Daniel  George 
as  a  partner,  but  left  the  paper  himself  with  the  issue  of  No- 
vember 3,  1800.  From  December  29,  1800,  till  February  2,  1801 
George  had  Elijah  Russell  as  a  partner  in  the  enterprise,  but 
after  the  latter  date  he  ran  the  paper  until  discontinued  on 
December  31,  1804.  Such,  in  brief,  was  the  history  of  Maine's 
first  newspaper. 

The  Gazette  of  Maine  was  brought  out  on  October  8,  1790,  at 
Portland  by  Benjamin  Titcomb,  Jr.,  but  was  consolidated 
with  The  Eastern  Herald  which  has  already  been  mentioned. 
Howard  S.  Robinson  started  The  Eastern  Star  at  Hallo  well  on 
August  4,  1794.  It  had  a  short  life,  being  followed  the  next 
year  by  The  Tocsin,  but  not  until  The  Kennebeck  Intelligencer 
had  been  established  November  21,  1795,  by  Peter  Edes  in 
what  is  now  called  Augusta,  but  what  was  then  -Hallo well. 
Though  discontinued  with  the  issue  of  June  6,  1800,  it  was 
revived  as  The  Kennebec  Gazette  on  November  14,  1800.  A  fire 
in  the  printing-office  caused  a  suspension  of  the  paper  from 
February  11,  to  March  28,  1804.  A  second  suspension  from 
November  21,  1804,  to  January  16,  1805,  was  due  to  a  lack  of 
financial  support.  On  August  8,  1805,  Edes  took  in  his  son 
Benjamin  as  a  partner,  but  as  the  paper  could  not  support 
both,  the  son  was  forced  to  leave.  Changing  the  character  of 
his  paper  and  making  it  more  a  party  organ,  Edes,  on  Febru- 
ary 13,  1810,  adopted  the  title  of  The  Herald  of  Liberty  for  his 
paper.  In  1815,  probably  with  an  issue  in  September,  Edes 
suspended  The  Herald  of  Liberty  and  left  Augusta,  where  he 
had  "sunk  property  by  tarrying  so  long  with  so  little  encour- 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  169 

agement,"  and  went  to  Bangor,  where  he  brought  out  The 
Bangor  Weekly  Register  November  25,  1815,  and  "could  make 
out  to  live  if  nothing  more."  Like  his  father,  B.  Edes,  of  The 
Boston  Gazette,  P.  Edes  failed  to  secure  popular  support,  pos- 
sibly because  he  was  too  ardent  a  Federalist.  With  the  issue 
of  August  23,  1817,  Edes  ceased  to  bring  out  a  paper  and  sold 
his  plant  to  James  Burton,  who  on  March  7,  1817,  had  started 
The  Augusta  Patriot,  but  who  had  evidently  failed  to  make  the 
paper  a  successful  venture.  Burton,  however,  did  not  resume 
the  publication  of  The  Bangor  Weekly  Register  until  December 
25,  1817.  The  space  that  Edes  had  used  to  advocate  a  separa- 
tion of  Maine  from  Massachusetts,  Burton  employed  to  advertise 
lottery  tickets.  The  Bangor  Register  lasted  until  August  2,  1881. 

Possibly  The  Tocsin,  established  at  Hallowell  in  1795  by 
Thomas  B.  Wait,  Howard  S.  Robinson,  and  John  K.  Baker,  may 
have  antedated  The  Kennebeck  Intelligencer,  but  little  is  known 
of  this  newspaper  save  that  it  had  a  short  life.  Incidentally,  it 
may  be  remarked  that  it  was  too  much  to  expect  a  Maine 
newspaper  at  this  period  to  support  three  men. 

The  first  daily  newspaper  in  that  State,  however,  was  The 
Courier  established  in  Portland  in  1829  by  Selba  Smith,  the 
original  Jack  Downing  of  "Jack  Downing  Letters"  fame. 
The  second  was  The  Portland  Daily  Advertiser,  first  issued  regu- 
larly as  a  daily  in  1831,  having  as  its  first  editor,  James  Brooks, 
who  later  founded  The  Express  in  New  York  City.  Its  most 
distinguished  editor  was  James  G.  Blaine,  who  used  journalism 
as  a  stepping-stone  to  politics.  The  first  morning  daily  in 
Portland  was  The  Times  brought  out  in  1836  by  Charles  P. 
Ilsley. 

LOCAL  AID  GIVEN  BY  KENTUCKY 

Although  Kentucky  was  first  organized  as  a  part  of  Vir- 
ginia, it  had  its  eyes  upon  admission  as  a  State  by  the  time 
the  Federal  Constitution  was  being  adopted.  To  promote  its 
admission,  Lexington,  at  that  time  the  most  important  town, 
voted  in  July,  1786,  a  free  lot  to  John  Bradford,  a  Virginia 
planter  who  had  come  to  Kentucky  after  the  War  of  the 
Revolution.  On  the  site  given  him  by  the  town  of  Lexington, 


170       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Bradford  put  up  a  log  print-shop  and  on  April  11,  k!787, 
brought  out  the  first  number  of  The  Kentucke  Gazette.  The 
delay  in  bringing  out  this  paper  was  due  to  the  difficulty  in 
getting  the  press,  type,  and  paper  from  Philadelphia.  This 
equipment  had  to  come  by  wagon  over  the  post-road  to  Pitts- 
burgh, and  then  by  flatboat  down  the  Ohio  to  Maysville,  and 
then  "by  nag"  over  the  trail  recently  blazed  to  Lexington. 

In  the  first  number,  Bradford  issued  this  apology  for  the 
appearance  of  his  paper:  — 

My  customers  will  excuse  this,  my  first  publication,  as  I  am  much 
hurried  to  get  an  impression  by  the  time  appointed.  A  great  part  of 
the  types  fell  into  pi  in  the  carriage  of  them  from  Limestone  to  this 
office,  and  my  partner,  which  is  the  only  assistant  I  have,  through  an 
indisposition  of  the  body,  has  been  incapable  of  rendering  the  smallest 
assistance  for  ten  days  past. 

The  partner  mentioned  in  the  quotation  just  given  was 
Bradford's  brother,  Fielding. 

The  initial  number  of  The  Kentucke  Gazette  was  a  single  sheet, 
two  pages  (10  x  19J),  three  columns  to  the  page.  Fielding  Brad- 
ford retired  with  the  issue  of  June  7,  1788,  and  from  that  time 
its  publisher  until  1802  was  John  Bradford.  The  peculiar  spell- 
ing of  " Kentucke "  was  changed  to  the  modern  form,  "Ken- 
tucky," on  March  14,  1789.  An  attempt  was  made  on  January 
4,  1797,  to  make  the  paper  a  semi- weekly,  but  a  year  later,  or  on 
January  3,  1798,  it  changed  back  to  a  weekly  again.  Daniel 
Bradford  succeeded  his  father  as  editor  and  publisher  of  the 
paper  on  April  2,  1802.  General  Advertiser  was  added  to  the  title 
at  the  beginning  of  1803.  Another  attempt  to  make  the  paper  a 
semi-weekly  was  made  on  February  19,  1806,  but  was  not  suc- 
cessful and  a  change  to  a  weekly  publication  was  resumed  on 
January  3,  1807.  The  Kentucky  Gazette  and  General  Advertiser 
passed  out  of  the  control  of  the  Bradford  family  on  October  3, 
1809,  when  Thomas  Smith  became  the  publisher.  Smith,  enlist- 
ing for  service  in  Canada  in  August,  1812,  turned  the  paper  over 
to  his  brother-in-law,  William  W.  Worseley,  but  still  kept  his  own 
name  in  the  imprint  as  publisher.  A  month  later,  however,  he 
took  in  John  Bickley  as  partner,  but  a  little  over  a  year  later 
sold  the  paper  to  Fielding  Bradford,  Jr.  It  was  published  for 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  171 

about  three  years  by  him  and  then  sold  to  John  Norvel  &  Co. 
The  "Co."  was  dropped  with  the  issue  of  February  7,  1818, 
but  on  March  5, 1819,  the  paper  was  transferred  to  Joshua  Norvel 
&  Co.,  which  later  became,  on  October  6  of  that  year,  Norvel  & 
Cavins.  The  latter  partner,  however,  became  the  sole  proprietor 
on  July  27,  1820.  The  Kentucky  Gazette  ceased  publication  some 
time  in  1848. 

The  second  paper  in  Kentucky  was  also  started  in  Lexington 
by  Thomas  H.  Stewart,  who,  on  or  near  February  17,  1795, 
brought  out  Stewart's  Kentucky  Herald.  After  ten  years  The 
Herald  became  a  part  of  The  Kentucky  Gazette. 

The  family  of  Bradford  was  connected  with  the  first  three 
papers  in  Kentucky.  In  1802  John  Bradford  was  the  publisher  of 
The  Kentucky  Herald,  just  mentioned;  on  November  7,  1795, 
Benjamin  J.  Bradford  brought  out  the  third  paper,  The  Ken- 
tucky Journal,  at  Frankfort. 

OTHER   PAPERS   IN   KENTUCKY 

Other  early  Kentucky  papers  were  The  Rights  of  Man,  or  The 
Kentucky  Mercury,  first  published  in  May,  1797,  at  Paris,  by 
Darius  Moffett;  The  Mirror,  August,  1797,  at  Washington,  by 
Hunter  &  Beaumont ;  The  Guardian  of  Freedom,  by  John  Brad- 
ford &  Son  (this  paper  was  really  a  branch  of  The  Kentucky 
Gazette  published  at  Frankfort  in  order  to  advocate  Bradford  as 
State  Printer);  The  Palladium,  August,  1798,  at  Frankfort,  by 
Hunter  (after  The  Mirror  at  Washington  was  discontinued,  the 
earlier  part  of  that  year);  The  Western  American,  in  1803,  at 
Bardstown,  by  Francis  Peniston;  The  Western  World,  in  1806, 
at  Frankfort,  by  Joseph  M.  Street;  The  Candid  Review,  in  1807, 
at  Bardstown,  by  Peter  Isler  &  Co.;  The  Louisville  Gazette,  in 
1807,  by  Joseph  Charles;  The  Impartial  Observer,  in  1807,  at 
Lexington,  by  Guerin  &  Prentiss;  The  Argus  of  Western  America, 
in  1808,  at  Frankfort,  by  William  Gerard. 

EARLY   JOURNALISM   IN   WEST  VIRGINIA 

Dr.  Robert  Henry,  physician,  who  had  come  to  Berkeley 
County  in  1792,  started  the  first  newspaper  in  West  Virginia 
at  Martinsburg  in  1789.  It  was  called  The  Potomac  Guardian 


172       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

and  the  Berkeley  Advertiser  and  had  for  its  motto,  "Where 
Liberty  Dwells,  There's  My  Stand."  The  earliest  known 
issue  is  that  of  April  3,  1792,  Volume  2,  Number  73.  It  was 
a  9  x  15  sheet  and  the  copy  is  preserved  at  the  Capitol  at  Rich- 
mond, Virginia.  Nathaniel  Willis,  father  of  Nathaniel  Willis, 
who  published  The  Boston  Recorder,  and  grandfather  of  Na- 
thaniel Parker  Willis,  who  was  the  most  distinguished  literary 
man  of  his  day,  founded  the  second  newspaper  of  West  Virginia, 
also  in  Martinsburg  in  1799.  Willis  called  his  paper  The  Mar- 
tinsburg  Gazette.  The  third  newspaper  in  the  State,  again 
printed  at  Martinsburg,  was  started  in  1800  and  called  The 
Berkeley  and  Jefferson  County  Intelligencer  and  Northern  Neck 
Advertiser.  Its  publisher  was  John  Alburtis.  Wheeling  had  its 
first  newspaper,  The  Repository,  in  1807.  Other  early  papers  in 
Wheeling  were  The  Times,  The  Gazette,  The  Telegraph,  and 
The  Virginian.  In  1819  Herbert  P.  Gaines  brought  out  the  first 
newspaper  at  the  Capital  of  the  State,  Charlestown,  The  Kana- 
wha  Patriot,  and  in  1820,  Mason  Campbell  brought  out  the 
second,  The  Western  Courier.  Other  papers  followed  until  by  1850 
there  were  three  dailies  and  twenty-one  weeklies  in  West  Virginia. 

INAUGURAL   JOURNALISM    IN    DISTRICT   OF    COLUMBIA 

Before  the  seat  of  government  was  permanently  located  in 
the  District  of  Columbia,  a  number  of  newspapers  had  been 
published  in  Georgetown.  The  first  of  these  was  The  Times 
and  Potowmack  Packet,  established  by  Charles  Fierer  in  February, 
1789.  Others  were  The  Weekly  Ledger,  started  by  Alexander 
Doyle  in  March,  1790;  The  Columbian  Chronicle,  by  Samuel 
Hanson  in  December,  1793 ;  and  The  Centinel  of  Liberty,  by  Green, 
English  &  Company  in  May,  1796.  The  first  paper  actually 
printed  in  Washington  City  was  The  Impartial  Observer  and 
Washington  Advertiser,  the  initial  number  of  which  Thomas 
Wilson  issued  on  May  22, 1795.  The  paper  was  suspended  about 
a  year  later  on  account  of  its  owner's  death.  Its  immediate 
successor  was  The  Washington  Gazette  —  a  semi-weekly  estab- 
lished on  June  15,  1796.  The  relation  between  The  Impartial 
Observer  and  The  Washington  Gazette  is  made  clear  by  the  follow- 
ing notice  in  the  early  issues  of  the  latter :  —  _ 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES 


173 


The  printers  of  news  papers  in  the  United  States  are  desirous  to  take 
notice  that  this  is  the  only  paper  printed  in  the  city  of  Washington,  and 
issues  from  the  office  late  the  property  of  Mr.  Thomas  Wilson  deceased, 
and  since  then  a  few  weeks  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  John  Crocker.  They 
are  requested  to  forward  their  papers  to  Benjamin  More,  or  the  printer 
of  The  Washington  Gazette  and  may  depend  on  having  The  Washington 
Gazette  regularly  forwarded  to  them. 

The  most  important  early  paper  was  the  tri- weekly,  The 
National  Intelligencer  and  Washington  Advertiser,  started  on 
October  31,  1800,  by  Samuel  Harrison  Smith,  who  moved  with 
the  Government  from  Philadelphia  to  Washington  and  who 
has  already  been  mentioned  several  times  in  these  pages.  He 
took  into  partnership  in  1810  Joseph  Gales,  Jr.,  who  dropped 
The  Washington  Advertiser  from  the  title.  After  Smith  became 
president  of  the  Washington  branch  of  the  United  States 
Bank,  he  retired  from  journalism  and  William  W.  Seaton 
became  associated  with  Gales  in  the  publishing  of  the  paper 
now  issued  daily.  ,  Under  the  editorship  of  these  two  men  the 
paper  became  the  recognized  Government  organ  —  called  by 
John  Randolph  "The  Court  Paper."  It  was  the  official  reporter 
of  Congress,  and  had  it  not  been  for  the  excellent  work  of 
Gales,  who  had  been  taught  stenography  by  his  father,  it  is 
extremely  doubtful  whether  the  great  speeches  of  Webster, 
Clay,  and  Calhoun  would  have  been  preserved. j  These  states- 
men, incidentally,  often  wrote  for  the  paper.  The  Intelligencer 
was  the  spokesman  for  the  Presidents  until  the  inauguration  of 
Jackson,  when  The  United  States  Telegraph,  edited  by  General 
Duff  Green,  became  the  Administration  organ.  Because  of 
Green's  endorsement  of  the  policies  of  John  C.  Calhoun,  Jackson 
established  The  Globe.  When  William  Henry  Harrison  was  in- 
augurated in  March,  1841,  The  Intelligencer  came  back  into  its 
own  official  position  until  the  Whig  Party  was  split  by  the  death 
of  the  President,  but  it  again  became  "The  Court  Paper"  when 
Fillmore  took  the  presidential  chair  on  the  death  of  Taylor. 
It  continued  to  be  published  in  Washington  until  January  10, 
1870,  when  it  was  moved  to  New  York,  where  it  lasted  only  a 
short  time.  The  reason  for  the  removal  was  the  fact  that  with 
the  secession  of  the  South  the  paper  lost  over  two  thirds  of  its 
entire  circulation. 


174       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

INITIAL   PAPERS    OF   TENNESSEE 

Very  often  the  publisher  of  the  first  newspaper  in  any  State 
was  also  the  authorized  printer  to  the  Territorial  or  State 
Legislature.  Such  was  the  case  in  Tennessee,  where  George 
Roulstone  first  brought  out,  at  Rogersville  on  November  5, 
1791,  The  Knoxville  Gazette.  After  issuing  a  few  numbers  he 
moved  his  plant  to  Knoxville,  where  he  continued  to  bring 
out  the  paper  until  his  death  in  1804.  He  remained  public  printer 
all  this  time  and  his  wife  was  later  elected  for  two  successive 
terms  to  fill  the  place. 

The  second  paper  in  Knoxville  was  The  Register  founded  in 
1798  by  John  R.  Parrington.  Another  early  Knoxville  paper 
was  Wilson's  Gazette  begun  in  1804  by  George  Wilson,  and  pub- 
lished until  1818,  when  Wilson  went  to  Nashville  to  begin 
The  Nashville  Gazette  in  the  interest  of  "Old  Hickory."  Work- 
ing with  Wilson  as  a  journeyman  printer  was  F.  S.  Heiskell, 
who,  shortly  before  the  former  left  for  Nashville,  started  a 
second  Register  in  August,  1816,  which  survived,  though  under 
many  editors,  until  the  outbreak  of  the  War  of  the  States. 

The  first  paper  in  Memphis  was  The  Memphis  Advocate  and 
Eastern  District  Intelligencer,  which  first  appeared  on  January 
18,  1827.  The  Times  was  established  soon  after  and  later  the  two 
papers  were  united  with  the  title  of  The  Times  and  Advocate. 

Journalism  began  in  Nashville  in  1797,  when  The  Tennessee 
Gazette  appeared  under  the  editorship  of  a  Kentucky  printer 
named  Henkle.  A  year  later  the  paper  was  sold  and  the  name 
changed  to  The  Clarion.  The  Hamilton  County  Gazette,  which 
later  became  The  Chattanooga  Gazette,  was  brought  from  Knox- 
ville to  Chattanooga  by  flatboat  in  1838.  It  suspended  in  1859, 
but  in  1864  was  revived  by  James  R.  Hood  and  E.  A.  James. 

OHIO   AND   ITS   EARLY   PAPERS 

The  distinction  of  being  the  first  paper  in  Ohio  belongs  to 
The  Centinel  of  the  Northwestern  Territory,  brought  out  in  the 
village  of  Cincinnati  on  November  9,  1793,  by  William  Maxwell. 
Born  about  1755  in  New  Jersey,  he  had  come  to  Ohio  by  way  of 
Pittsburgh.  He  brought  with  him  a  Ramage  press  and  a  few 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  175 

fonts  of  type  which  he  set  up  in  a  log  cabin  print-shop  at  the 
corner  of  Front  and  Sycamore  Streets.  By  way  of  a  motto  for 
his  paper  he  borrowed  that  of  The  New  York  Chronicle,  "Open 
to  All  Parties  —  But  Influenced  by  None." 

Speaking  as  the  printer  of  The  Centinel  of  the  Northwestern 
Territory,  he  said  in  his  opening  issue :  — 

Having  arrived  at  Cincinnati,  he  has  applied  himself  to  that  which 
has  been  the  principal  object  of  his  removal  to  this  country,  the  Pub- 
lication of  a  News  Paper.  This  country  is  in  its  infancy,  and  the  in- 
habitants are  daily  exposed  to  an  enemy  who,  not  content  with  taking 
away  the  lives  of  men  in  the  field,  have  swept  away  whole  families,  and 
burnt  their  habitations.  We  are  well  aware  that  the  want  of  regular 
and  certain  trade  down  the  Mississippi,  deprives  this  country  in  great 
measure,  of  money  at  the  present  time.  These  are  discouragements, 
nevertheless  I  am  led  to  believe  that  the  people  of  this  country  are  dis- 
posed to  promote  science,  and  have  the  fullest  assurance  that  the 
Press,  from  its  known  utility,  will  receive  proper  encouragement.  And 
on  my  part  am  content  with  small  gains,  at  the  present,  flattering  my- 
self that  from  attention  to  business,  I  shall  preserve  the  good  wishes 
of  those  who  have  already  countenanced  me  in  this  undertaking,  and 
secure  the  friendship  of  subsequent  population. 

The  paper,  published  on  Saturday,  was  a  four-page  sheet  and 
had  three  columns  to  the  page.  Having  mislaid  the  subscription 
list  Maxwell  published  a  notice  in  the  first  issue  that  subscribers 
should  call  at  the  office  for  their  paper  and  that  subscriptions 
would  be  received  "in  Columbia  by  John  Armstrong,  Esquire; 
North-Bend  by  Aaron  Cadwell,  Esquire;  Coleram  by  Capt.  John 
Dunlap,  and  in  New-Port  by  Capt.  John  Vartelle."  At  the  very 
start  Maxwell  advocated  the  opening  of  the  Mississippi  to  nav- 
igation and  never  ceased  to  be  the  pleader  of  this  cause  so 
long  as  he  remained  the  editor.  Having  been  appointed  post- 
master to  Cincinnati,  he  sold  The  Centinel  of  the  Northwestern 
Territory  in  1796  to  Edmund  Freeman,  who  changed  its  name  to 
Freeman's  Journal.  The  latter  continued  its  publication  under 
that  title  until  1800  when  he  followed  the  seat  of  the  Territorial 
Government  to  Chillicothe  and  brought  out  Freeman's  Journal 
in  that  place.  Upon  his  death,  in  1801,  Nathaniel  Willis  pur- 
chased the  paper  and  combined  it  with  The  Sciota  Gazette,  a  paper 
still  published  at  Sciota. 


176       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

The  next  paper,  in  order  of  establishment,  in  Ohio  was  The 
Western  Spy  and  Hamilton  Gazette,  first  published  May  28, 
1799,  at  Cincinnati  by  James  Carpenter.  Its  name  was  changed 
to  The  Western  Spy  in  1806;  three  years  later,  April  13, 1809,  to 
The  Whig,  and  still  later,  June  13,  1810,  to  The  Advertiser.  Evi- 
dently, the  changes  in  names  did  not  add  to  the  circulation  of  the 
sheet,  for  it  was  eventually  forced  to  suspend  publication.  In- 
cidentally it  may  be  remarked  that  in  September,  1810,  Car- 
penter started  The  Western  Spy,  but  early  in  1819  he  changed 
it  to  The  Western  Spy  and  Cincinnati  General  Advertiser.  It 
united  with  The  Literary  Cadet  on  April  29, 1820,  only  to  become 
The  National  Republican  and  Ohio  Political  Register  on  January 
1,  1823.  A  change  in  name  was  made  January  3,  1830,  to  The 
National  Republican  and  Cincinnati  Daily  Mercantile  Advertiser, 
and  on  July  11, 1833,  to  The  Cincinnati  Republican  and  Commer- 
cial Register. 

The  third  paper  in  Ohio  has  already  been  mentioned,  The 
Sciota  Gazette.  This  influential  sheet,  so  often  quoted  in  New 
York,  Philadelphia,  and  other  papers,  was  established  in  Chilli- 
cothe  April  25, 1800,  by  Nathaniel  Willis,  a  family  name  often  met 
with  in  the  history  of  American  journalism.  The  Gazette  absorbed 
The  Fredonian  in  August,  1815,  and  The  Supporter  in  March,  1821. 

Of  the  other  early  papers  in  Ohio  mention  may  be  made  of 
The  Ohio  Gazette  and  The  Territorial  and  Virginia  Herald,  the 
fourth  paper  in  the  Northwestern  Territory  established  De- 
cember 7,  1801,  by  Wyllys  Silliman  and  Elijah  Backus  at 
Marietta;  The  Liberty  Hall  and  Cincinnati  Mercury,  by  John  W. 
Browne,  December  4,  1804,  at  Cincinnati;  The  Ohio  Herald, 
by  Thomas  G.  Bradford  &  Company,  July  27,  1805,  at  Chilli- 
cothe;  The  Fredonian,  by  R.  D.  Richardson,  February  19,  1807, 
at  Chillicothe;  The  Star,  by  John  McLean,  February  13, 1807,  at 
Lebanon;  The  Commentator,  by  Dunham  and  Gardiner,  Sep- 
tember 16, 1807,  at  Marietta;  The  Supporter,  by  George  Nashee, 
September  29, 1808,  at  Chillicothe;  The  Independent  Republican, 
by  Peter  Parcels,  September  8,  1809,  at  Chillicothe;  The  Im- 
partial Observer,  by  John  C.  Gilkinson  &  Company  March  25, 
1809,  at  St.  Clairsville;  The  Ohio  Sentinel,  by  Isaac  G.  Burnett 
May  3,  1810,  at  Dayton. 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  177 

Ohio  had  in  1810  fourteen  newspapers  and  by  1819,  thirty- 
three. 

INTRODUCTORY   PAPERS   OF   MISSISSIPPI 

As  in  other  States,  the  first  paper  in  Mississippi  was  The 
Gazette.  It  appeared  on,  or  near  August  1,  1800,  at  Natchez  and 
was  called  The  Mississippi  Gazette.  Its  editor  and  printer  was 
Benjamin  Stokes.  For  a  year,  during  1801,  the  paper  was  pub- 
lished by  Sackett  &  Wallace,  but  later,  Mr.  Stokes  again  as- 
sumed control  and  continued  publication  until  about  January 
1,  1802. 

On  or  near  August  11,  1801,  the  second  newspaper  in  Missis- 
sippi appeared  at  Natchez  and  was  called  The  Intelligencer.  Its 
printers  were  D.  Moffett  and  James  Farrell.  Its  life  was  short, 
and  was  followed  by  The  Mississippi  Herald  on  July  26,  1802. 
This  by  all  means  was  the  most  important  paper  in  this  State 
during  its  early  period.  It  was  printed  by  Andrew  Marschelk. 
Later,  it  became  The  Mississippi  Herald  and  Natchez  Gazette. 
The  old  files,  which  once  belonged  to  Colonel  Marschelk,  show 
that  he  conducted  the  paper  under  the  following  titles :  Natchez 
Gazette,  Washington  Republican,  Washington  Republican  and 
Natchez  Intelligencer,  State  Gazette,  Mississippi  Republican, 
State  Gazette,  Natchez  Newspaper  and  Public  Advertiser,  Missis- 
sippi Statesman,  Mississippi  Statesman  and  Natchez  Gazette, 
and  finally  The  Natchez  Gazette. 

The  next  paper  in  Mississippi  was  The  Constitution  Conserva- 
tor, which  was  founded  on  or  near  October  16,  1802,  by  John 
Wade  at  Natchez.  On  September  1,  1804,  John  Shaw  and 
Timothy  Terrill  brought  out  The  Mississippi  Messenger  at 
Natchez.  The  chief  distinction  of  this  paper  was  that  many  of 
its  editorials  were  written  in  doggerel. 

BEGINNINGS   IN   INDIANA 

Journalism  in  Indiana  began  in  Vincennes  when  Elihu  Stout, 
a  printer  from  Lexington,  Kentucky,  brought  out  the  first 
number  of  The  Indiana  Gazette  on  July  31, 1804.  The  newspaper 
was  produced  under  great  difficulties.  The  paper  was  brought 
to  Vincennes  on  pack-horses  which  traveled  over  the  old  Buf- 


178       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

falo  Trail.  The  plant  itself  had  been  brought  from  Frankfort, 
Kentucky,  down  the  Ohio  River  and  up  to  Wabash  in  what  was 
then  called  "piroques."  The  printing-office  burned  out  in  about 
two  years,  and  the  paper  was  revived  on  July  11, 1807,  by  Stout 
under  the  title,  The  Western  Sun.  Stout  was  the  Territorial 
Printer  and  conducted  the  paper  until  1845  when  he  sold  out 
after  he  received  the  office  of  postmaster. 

Other  early  Indiana  papers  included  The  Gazette,  established 
at  Corydon  in  1814;  The  Plaindealer,  established  at  Brookville 
in  1816;  The  Indiana  Republic,  established  at  Madison  in  1815; 
The  Indiana  Register,  established  at  Vevay  in  1816;  The  Centinel, 
established  at  Vincennes  in  1817;  The  Indiana  Oracle,  established 
at  Lawrenceburg  in  1817;  The  Intelligencer,  established  at 
Charleston  in  1818.  The  first  directory  of  Indiana  papers  was  a 
gazetteer,  published  in  1831  by  the  proprietors  of  The  Indiana 
Journal,  and  listed  for  1832  twenty-nine  different  newspapers. 

Notices  similar  to  the  following  —  taken  from  The  Blooming- 
ton  Post  —  appeared  frequently  in  Indiana  papers :  — 

Persons  expecting  to  pay  for  their  papers  in  produce  must  do  so 
soon,  or  the  cash  will  be  expected.  Pork,  flour,  corn  and  meal  will  be 
taken  at  the  market  prices.  Also,  those  who  expect  to  pay  us  in  fire- 
wood must  do  so  immediately  —  we  must  have  our  wood  laid  for  the 
winter  before  the  roads  get  bad. 

MAIDEN   ATTEMPTS   IN   MISSOURI 

Joseph  Charless,  a  printer  who  had  worked  on  The  Kentucky 
Gazette  at  Lexington,  was  the  founder  of  journalism  in  Missouri. 
Securing  an  old  Ramage  press  and  a  few  fonts  of  type  he  put  his 
plant  aboard  a  keel-boat  on  the  Ohio  and  floated  down  that 
river  to  find  a  permanent  location  at  what  is  now  St.  Louis,  but 
was  then  only  a  little  settlement  of  about  one  thousand  inhab- 
itants. Here,  on  July  12,  1808,  he,  with  the  help  of  Joseph 
Hinkle,  a  former  printer  on  a  Kentucky  Gazette,  pulled  the  first 
number  of  The  Missouri  Gazette.  In  this  period  in  American  his- 
tory Congress  had  divided  its  recently  acquired  province  into 
the  Territories  of  Orleans  and  Louisiana.  St.  Louis  was  in  Lou- 
isiana Territory,  so  on  December  7,  1809,  Charless  changed  the 
title  from  a  local  to  a  more  general  one  and  called  his  paper  The 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  179 

Louisiana  Gazette.  When  Congress,  however,  again  set  off 
Missouri  and  Louisiana  each  as  a  separate  territory,  Charless 
on  July  11,  1812,  returned  to  the  original  name  of  The  Missouri 
Gazette.  Charless  retired  from  the  paper  on  September  13,  1820, 
when  he  sold  it  to  James  C.  Cummins.  On  March  13,  1822,  he, 
in  turn,  sold  it  to  Edward  Charless,  the  oldest  son  of  the  founder, 
who  changed  the  name  to  The  Missouri  Republican,  as  a  personal 
tribute  to  his  Jeffersonian  doctrines.  It  is  now  published  as 
The  St.  Louis  Republic. 

In  order  to  counteract  the  influence  of  The  Gazette  the  politi- 
cal opponents  of  Charless  raised  a  fund  of  one  thousand  dollars  to 
start  a  Republican  newspaper  in  St.  Louis.  An  advertisement  in 
The  Lexington  Kentucky  Reporter  brought  them  Joshua  Norbell, 
of  Nashville,  Tennessee.  Early  in  May,  1815,  he  started  a  rival 
sheet  called  The  Western  Journal.  Two  years  later  he  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Sergeant  Hall,  of  Cincinnati,  who  issued  the  first 
number  of  his  paper  under  the  new  name  of  The  Western  Emi- 
grant. Two  years  later  the  paper  became  The  St.  Louis  Enquirer, 
which  once  had  for  its  editor  Thomas  H.  Benton,  who  later  for- 
sook journalism  for  politics  and  became  the  United  States 
Senator. 

SPOKEN   PAPER  IN  MICHIGAN 

Journalism  in  Michigan  began  with  that  most  interesting  pre- 
cursor, the  spoken  newspaper,  conducted  under  the  auspices  of 
the  Reverend  Father  Gabriel  Richard,  a  priest  of  the  Order  of 
Sulpice,  who  came  to  Detroit  in  1798  as  resident  pastor  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church  of  St.  Anne.  Mention  has  been  made  in 
an  earlier  chapter  of  how  he  appointed  a  town-crier  whose  duty 
it  was  on  Sunday  to  stand  on  the  church  steps  and  to  tell  the 
public  in  general  and  the  congregation  in  particular  such  news 
as  was  fit  to  speak.  Advertising  had  its  place  in  this  spoken 
newspaper  which  told  of  the  things  for  sale,  etc.  For  the  benefit 
of  those  absent  at  the  spoken  edition  a  written  one  was  publicly 
posted  near  the  church.  For  some  time  Father  Richard  was 
assisted  in  this  way  of  publishing  the  news  by  Theopolis  Meetz, 
who  was  at  the  time  sacristan  of  St.  Anne's  Church,  but  who  later 
became  a  printer  and  newspaper  publisher. 


180       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

FIRST   PRINTED    PAPER 

Out  of  this  spoken,  and  later  written,  newspaper,  grew  the 
first  printed  sheet  in  Michigan  entitled  The  Michigan  Essay,  or 
Impartial  Observer.  It  first  appeared  in  Detroit  on  August  31, 
1809.  As  editor  and  publisher  Father  Richard  selected  one  of  his 
parishioners,  James  M.  Miller.  The  French  section  —  not  a 
half,  as  has  so  often  been  asserted,  but  about  a  column  and  a 
half  —  was  undoubtedly  written  by  the  Father  himself.  An 
editorial  announcement  informed  the  public  that  the  paper 
would  be  published  every  Thursday  and  handed  to  city  subscrib- 
ers at  five  dollars  per  annum,  payable  half-yearly  in  advance. 
It  stated  its  policy  in  the  following  words:  "The  public  are 
respectfully  informed  that  the  Essay  will  be  conducted  with  the 
utmost  impartiality;  that  it  will  not  espouse  any  political  party, 
but  fairly  and  candidly  communicate  whatever  may  be  deemed 
worthy  of  information,  whether  foreign,  domestic,  or  local." 

The  second  paper  in  Michigan  was  The  Detroit  Gazette,  started 
on  July  25,  1817,  by  Sheldon  &  Reed.  This  was  the  first  perma- 
nent newspaper  in  Michigan,  and  like  its  predecessor,  The  Michi- 
gan Essay,  it  had  to  serve  not  only  the  English  but  also  the  French 
population  of  the  city.  One  page  was  in  French  and  the  other 
three  in  English.  It  had  an  unusually  hard  time  to  make  both 
ends  meet,  for  in  its  issue  of  July  14,  1820,  it  asserted  that  only 
ninety  of  its  one  hundred  and  fifty-two  subscribers  had  paid 
their  subscriptions  and  not  a  single  advertiser  had  yet  met  his 
bill.  In  spite  of  this  fact,  however,  the  paper  survived  until 
April  22,  1830. 

The  next  paper  was  The  Michigan  Herald,  also  of  Detroit, 
brought  out  on  May  10,  1825,  by  H.  Chipman  and  Joseph 
Seymour. 

RUSH   FOR   ALABAMA 

The  first  paper  in  what  is  now  Alabama  was  unquestionably 
The  Mobile  Sentinel,  published  by  Samuel  Miller  and  John  B. 
Hood  at  Fort  Stoddert,  May  23,  1811.  These  men  were  so  de- 
termined to  be  the  first  in  Mobile  journalism  that  they  started 
south  before  the  city  was  annexed,  but  were  compelled  to  stop 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  181 

for  the  printing  outside  in  the  neighborhood  of  St.  Stephens, 
where  they  began  to  print  The  Mobile  Sentinel  while  under  the 
protection  of  Fort  Stoddert.  Sixteen  issues  of  this  paper  at  least 
were  brought  out,  but  whether  a  single  one  of  them  was  actually 
printed  in  Mobile  is  not  known. 

Mobile  under  Spanish  rule  surrendered  to  General  James 
Wilkinson,  April  13,  1813.  On  April  28,  1813,  a  Mobile  Gazette 
with  an  account  of  the  affair  was  published.  Its  editor  and  pub- 
lisher was  George  B.  Cotton.  Cotton,  in  selling  out  his  interest, 
said  in  his  farewell  in  the  issue  of  June  23,  1819,  that  The  Mo- 
bile Gazette  was  started  under  his  management  in  the  infancy 
of  the  town,  and  some  have  taken  this  assertion  to  mean  that 
the  paper  was  in  existence  while  Mobile  was  under  Spanish  rule. 
This  seems  extremely  doubtful. 

The  Commercial  Register,  the  predecessor  of  the  present  M o- 
bile  Register,  appeared  on  December  10,  1821.  In  1823  The 
Register  printed  a  brief  note  that  it  had  purchased  the  title, 
interest,  and  property  of  The  Mobile  Gazette. 

ORIGIN  IN  ILLINOIS 

The  year  of  1814  saw  the  first  newspaper  in  Illinois.  It  was 
called  The  Illinois  Herald  and  was  published  at  Kaskaskia  by 
Matthew  Duncan,  Printer  to  the  Territory  and  publisher  of  the 
Laws  of  the  Union,  1815.  Duncan  was  a  native  of  Virginia  and 
came  to  Illinois  by  way  of  Kentucky.  The  paper  appeared  on  or 
near  June  24,  1814,  as  Number  30  of  Volume  I  is  dated  De- 
cember 13,  1814.  On  April  24,  1816,  the  paper  became  The 
Western  Intelligencer  and  was  published  by  Robert  Blackwell 
and  Daniel  P.  Cook.  On  May  27,  1818,  the  paper  became  The 
Illinois  Intelligencer  and  continued  publication  under  that  title 
until  October  14,  1820,  when  it  suspended,  only  to  be  revived  on 
December  14  of  that  year  at  Vandalia  which  had  become  the 
Capital  of  the  State. 

The  second  paper,  The  Illinois  Immigrant,  appeared  in  Shaw- 
neetown  on  June  13,  1818,  with  Henry  Eddy  and  Singleton  H. 
Kimmel  as  editors.  On  September  25,  1819,  it  became  The  Il- 
linois Gazette. 

Difficulties  of  printing  the  early  papers  in  Illinois  was  illus- 


182       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

trated  in  the  following  editorial  by  James  Hall,  the  editor  of 
The  Illinois  Gazette,  in  1821 :  - 

After  a  lapse  of  several  weeks  (three  months  to  be  exact)  we  are  now 
enabled  to  resume  the  publication  of  our  sheet.  Paper  (the  want  of 
which  has  been  the  cause  of  the  late  interruption)  was  shipped  for  us 
early  last  fall,  on  board  a  boat  bound  for  St.  Louis  —  to  which  place, 
owing  probably  to  the  forgetfulness  of  the  Master,  it  was  carried  and 
has  but  just  now  come  to  hand.  .  .  .  High  and  low  water  it  seems  are 
equally  our  enemies  —  the  one  is  sure  to  delay  the  arrival  of  some  article 
necessary  to  the  prosecution  of  our  labors,  while  the  other  hurries  some- 
thing of  which  we  stand  in  the  most  pressing  need,  down  the  current 
beyond  our  reach. 

PARTY  ORGANS  IN  ARKANSAS 

Journalism  began  in  Arkansas  when  William  E.  Woodruff 
printed  at  the  Post  of  Arkansas  the  first  number  of  The  Arkan- 
sas Gazette  on  November  20,  1819.  A  native  of  Long  Island,  he 
had  arrived  at  the  Post  on  October  30,  1819,  from  Franklin, 
Tennessee,  bringing  with  him  by  canoes  and  dug-outs  a  press 
and  some  type.  Being  the  Printer  to  the  Territory  he  ceased  to 
bring  out  The  Gazette  at  the  Post  on  November  24,  1821,  and 
went  to  Little  Rock,  which  had  been  made  the  Capital.  Here  he 
revived  his  paper  on  December  29,  1821,  and  continued  it  as 
the  official  organ  of  the  State  until  1833.  That  year  he  refused 
to  let  The  Arkansas  Gazette  be  simply  a  mouthpiece  for  Governor 
Pope.  Woodruff,  like  most  of  the  early  editors  in  the  West,  had 
political  aspirations  and  used  his  newspaper  to  help  in  their 
achievement,  but  when  elected  State  Treasurer  in  October,  1836, 
he  sold  his  paper  to  Cole  &  Spooner.  The  latter  soon  retired, 
and  going  to  Hartford,  joined  the  staff  of  The  Courant;  the 
former  continued  The  Gazette  until  about  1840,  when,  for  political 
and  other  reasons,  he  had  to  withdraw  from  the  paper,  which 
came  again  to  Woodruff,  its  former  owner.  Three  years  later 
he  sold  it  to  Benjamin  J.  Bordon,  who  changed  it  from  a  Demo- 
cratic to  a  Whig  paper.  Chagrined  at  this  change  in  policy  of 
The  Arkansas  Gazette,  Woodruff  started,  with  the  help  of  John 
E.  Knight,  in  1846,  The  Arkansas  Democrat.  Four  years  later 
the  two  papers  were  combined  under  the  title,  The  Gazette  and 
Democrat.  The  paper  was  eventually  sold  to  Captain  Columbus 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  183 

Danley,  who  dropped  the  Democrat  from  the  title  when  The 
True  Democrat  appeared.  Save  for  its  suspension  in  1863-65, 
The  Arkansas  Gazette  has  continued  publication  until  to-day. 

The  second  paper  in  the  State  was  The  Advocate  brought  out  at 
Little  Rock  in  March,  1830,  by  Charles  P.  Bertrand,  a  native  of 
New  York  City  and  a  frontier  lawyer  of  unusual  ability.  It 
was  owned  and  edited  by  him  until  1835  when  it  passed  into  the 
control  of  Albert  Pike  and  Charles  E.  Rice.  The  same  year  that 
The  Advocate  was  established,  The  Democrat  was  founded  at 
Helena  by  Henry  L.  Biscoe:  its  editor,  however,  was  William 
T.  Yeomans.  After  the  rupture  between  Governor  Pope  and 
The  Arkansas  Gazette  Andrew  J.  Hunt,  in  December,  1833, 
started  at  Little  Rock  The  Political  Intelligencer;  edited  by 
Colonel  John  W.  Steele,  it  became  the  official  spokesman  for 
Governor  Pope  until  the  end  of  his  term.  Later,  becoming  a 
Whig  organ,  it  changed  its  name  to  The  Times.  On  Hunt's 
death  The  Times  and  The  Advocate  joined  forces  under  the 
leadership  of  Albert  Pike.  Charles  T.  Towne  in  1839  called  for 
a  short  time  The  Witness  to  the  stand  in  behalf  of  the  Demo- 
cratic Party.  C.  F.  M.  Noland  let  loose  The  Eagle  at  Batesville 
in  1840  to  cry  for  the  Whigs.  David  Lambert  let  The  Star  first 
shine  in  Little  Rock  the  same  year. 

TEXAS   SIFTINGS 

When  Commodore  Aury,  Colonel  Mina,  and  Captain  Perry 
were  stationed  at  Galveston  Island  in  1816  the  military  orders 
and  others  news  were  printed  on  a  small  sheet  by  Samuel  Bangs, 
a  peripatetic  printer  coming  from  Baltimore.  While  this  sheet 
could  hardly  be  called  the  first  newspaper,  it  was  a  sort  of  pre- 
cursor to  journalism  in  Texas.  Another  precursor  appeared  in 
1819  when  the  Long  Expedition  reached  Nacogdoches  and  made 
that  point  its  headquarters.  During  its  stay  Horatio  Bigelow 
published  a  small  sheet  more  or  less  regularly;  it  gave  the  history 
of  the  Expedition,  however,  rather  than  general  news. 

The  first  real  paper  of  the  Lone  Star  State  was  The  Texas 
Gazette,  which  made  its  appearance  September  29,  1829,  and  was 
published  by  Godwin  Brown  Gotten  in  San  Felipe,  Austin  County. 
The  Texas  Gazette  survived  until  1832  when  it  was  purchased  by 


184       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

D.  W.  Anthony  and  united  with  The  Texas  Gazette  and  Bra- 
zoria Commercial  Advertiser,  a  paper  started  in  1830  by  Mr. 
Anthony  at  Brazoria.  The  union  was  called  The  Constitutional 
Advocate  and  The  Texas  Public  Advertiser  and  its  first  issue  ap- 
peared on  August  30,  1832.  One  year  later  Anthony  died  of  the 
cholera  in  Brazoria.  In  July,  1834,  F.  C.  Gray  and  A.  J.  Harris 
began  in  Brazoria  the  publication  of  The  Texas -Republican,  a 
paper  which  continued  until  the  invasion  of  Santa  Anna  in  1836. 
Of  The  Advocate  of  the  Peoples1  Rights,  another  paper  started  in 
Brazoria  in  1834  by  Oliver  H.  Allen,  little  is  known,  and  not 
much  more  about  The  Texian  Advocate  and  Immigrants'  Guide, 
which  appeared  spasmodically  during  1835-36  in  Nacogdoches. 


CHAPTER  XII 
BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  PENNY  PRESS 

THE  precursor  of  the  penny  press  was  undoubtedly  The  Daily 
Evening  Transcript,  which  was  established  in  Boston  (Jli  Salur- 
"cmyi  Juiy24,  1830,  by  Lynde  M.  Walter^  a  graduate  of  Harvard. 
It  was  published  l"he  fhst  Iwuniaysof  the  next  week,  but  was 
then  suspended  until  August  27, 1830,  since  when  it  has  appeared 
without  a  single  break  in  its  publication.  While  not  sold  on  the 
streets  at  a  penny  a  copy,  it  quoted  the  extremely  low  rate  of 
four  dollars  per  annum  payable  semi-annually  in  advance.  In  the 
preface  it  said  that  it  was  started  to  supply  the  "  deficiency  cre- 
ated by  the  surcease  of  The  Bulletin,"  and  asserted  that  ic  would 
not  "mingle  in  the  everyday  warfare  of  politics  nor  attempt  to 
control  public  bias,  in  abstract  questions  of  Religion  or  Moral- 
ity. "  Its  political  creed  it  outlined  as  follows:  —  , 

We  believe  that  Duties  imposed  upon  Imports,  for  the  protection 
of  domestic  industry,  are  necessary  and  constitutional;  that  Congress 
has  power  to  appropriate  the  public  funds  to  works  of  internal  im- 
provement; —  that  the  Bank  of  the  United  States' is  expedient  to  the 
preservation  of  a  wholesome  currency,  and  is  warranted  by  the  Con- 
stitution; —  that  the  union  of  these  States  was  decreed  by  the  whole 
people,  —  will  be  maintained  by  the  whole  people,  —  and  cannot  be 
dissolved  but  by  the  will  of  a  majority  of  the  whole  people  voting  each 
for  himself,  either  personally  or  by  special  delegation. 

It  had  two  departments  which  attracted  attention:  one  was 
headed,  " Police  Court";  the  other,  " Marine  Journal."  In 
connection  with  the  latter  the  paper  published  a  notice  of  in- 
debtedness for  "  Facilities  afforded  by  Mr.  Topliff  of  Merchant's 
Hall  for  the  memoranda  inserted  in  our  Marine  Journal." 

Walter,  the  first  editor,  occupied  the  chair  until  his  death  in 
1842,  when  his  sister,  Cornelia  Walter,  assumed  the  editorship. 
During  the  first  few  years  of  Mr.  Walter's  regime,  the  most  im- 
portant matter  of  moment  was  the  anti-slavery  movement 


186       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

While  The  Transcript  could  not  be  called  an  anti-slavery  paper, 
it  did  give  free  access  to  its  editorial  columns  to  William  Lloyd 
Garrison,  then  a  young  man,  who  wrote  a  great  deal  over  the 
signature  of  W.  L.  G.  In  1847  Eppes  Sargent,  a  well-known 
poet  and  author,  became  the  editor  and  continued  until  1853, 
when  Daniel  M.  Haskell  sat  in  the  editorial  chair  until  1874. 
During  the  twenty-odd  years  that  Mr.  Haskell  was  editor,  he  was 
assisted  by  such  men  of  literary  excellence  as  E.  P.  Whipple, 
Charles  Sumner,  Wendell  Phillips,  etc.  Since  Mr.  HaskelPs 
death  in  1874,  various  men  have  been  editors  of  The  Transcript, 
and  each  of  these  has  kept  the  paper  up  to  the  high  aims  of 
independent  journalism  which  was  the  keynote  of  its  beginning. 

FIRST  DAILIES   SOLD   FOR  CENT 

Possibly  the  first  daily  paper  which  sold  for  a  penny  was 
TheJZent,  which  started  in  Philadelphia  the  same  year  that 
The  Daily  Evening  Transcript  was  established  in  Boston.  The 
Cent  has  long  been  a  lost  newspaper  coin  of  which  little  is  known 
save  that  its  circulation  was  small  and  its  life  was  short.  Its 
publisher,  however,  was  Dr.  Christopher  Columbus  Conwell, 
who  died  in  1832. 

By  mere  coincidence  the  man  who  first  conceived  the  idea  of 
publishing  a  penny  paper  in  New  York  was  also  a  physician, 
Dr.  Horatio  David  Shepard.  As  he  walked  through  the  Bowery 
and  noticed  how  readily  candy,  peanuts,  and  other  trinkets, 
which  sold  for  a  cent,  were  passed  over  the  counter,  the  thought 
occurred  to  him  that  a  newspaper  sold  at  the  same  price  would 
be  successful.  Enthused  with  the  idea  he  went  to  several  printers 
and  tried  to  get  them  interested  in  his  proposition  to  start  a 
penny  newspaper.  At  first  he  was  unsuccessful,  but  finally  per- 
suaded Horace  Greeley  to  join  him  in  bringing  out  such  a  paper. 
Greeley,  however,  insisted  that  the  price  was  too  sudden  a  re- 
duction from  the  six  pennies  ordinarily  charged  for  a  newspaper 
and  insisted  on  doubling  the  proposed  price.  With  a  capital  of 
only  two  hundred  dollars  and  with  a  credit  which  was  scarcely 
good  for  forty  dollars'  worth  of  type,  The  Morrjmg_Eost  started 
on  January  1,  183&  as  a  two-cent  paper  with  Dr-^ghegard, 
Horace  Greeley,  and  Francis  W.  Story  as  its  printers  and  pub- 


BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  PENNY  PRESS        187 

Ushers.  The  date  selected  for  bringing  out  the  sheet  was  most 
inopportune ;  a  snowstorm  prevented  the  distribution  of  the 
papers.  After  one  week's  trial,  in  a  vain  effort  to  dispose  of  a 
daily  edition  of  two  or  three  hundred  copies,  the  price  was  re- 
duced to  one  cent.  The  change  was  made  too  late,  however,  for 
financial  resources  had  been  exhausted  and  no  printer  was  will- 
ing to  assume  the  burden  of  continuing  publication.  After  three 
weeks  The  Morning  Post  was  a  tombstone  in  the  journalism 
graveyard,  already  overcrowded  in  New  York. 

FOUNDER  OF  PENNY  PRESS  IN  NEW  YORK 

But  in  September  of  that  year,  Benjamin  Henry  Day,  a  prac- 
tical printer,  who  had  learned  his  trade  on  The  Springfield  Re- 
publican and  had  taken  a  post-graduate  course  in  the  composing- 
room  of  The  New  York  Evening  Post,  did  establish  in  New  York 
a  penny  sheet  to  which  he  gave  the  very  appropriate  name  of 
The  Sun  —  said  to  have  been  suggested  by  a  compositor,  David 
teftisey.  According  to  Day's  statement  he  had  first  planned  a 
penny  paper  in  1832,  when,  on  account  of  the  presence  of  cholera 
in  New  York,  he  had  scarcely  enough  business  for  his  print- 
shop  to  pay  his  running  expenses.  In  the  spare  time  thus  af- 
forded he  roughly  mapped  out  the  plans  for  a  daily  paper  to 
keep  his  presses  busy.  In  an  address  in  1851  Mr.  Day  thus  told 
of  his  early  venture :  — 

In  August,  ,1833,  I  finally  made  up  my  mind  to  venture  the  experi- 
ment, and  I  issifect  the  first  number  of  The  Sun  September  3.  It  is  not 
necessary  to  speak  of  the  wonderful  success  of  the  paper.  At  the  end 
of  three  years  the  difficulty  of  striking  off  the  large  edition  on  a  double- 
cylinder  press  in  the  time  usually  allowed  to  daily  newspapers  was 
very  great.  In  1835  I  introduced  steam-power,  now  so  necessary  an 
appendage  to  almost  every  newspaper  office.  At  that  time,  all  the 
Napier  presses  in  the  city  were  turned  by  crank-men,  and  as  The  Sun 
was  the  only  daily  newspaper  of  large  circulation,  so  it  seemed  to  be 
the  only  establishment  where  steam  was  really  indispensable.  But  even 
this  great  aid  to  the  speed  of  the  Napier  machines  did  not  keep  up  with 
the  increasing  circulation  of  The  Sun.  Constant  and  vexatious  com- 
plaints of  the  late  delivery  could  not  be  avoided  up  to  the  time  that  I 
left  the  establishment  and  until  the  invention  of  the  press  which  per- 
mitted the  locking  of  the  type  upon  the  cylinder. 


188       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

It  was  Day's  plan  to  make  a  paper  not  for  the  classes  which 
were  already  well  served  by  the  six-penny  sheets,  but  for  the 
masses  who  had  no  newspaper.  Starting  with  a  circulation  of 
three  hundred,  The  Sun  rapidly  prospered  until  very  shortly  it 
was  pressing  hard  the  old  conservative  sheets.  True  to  his  origi- 
nal plans  Day  turned  out  a  paper  which  gave  in  a  condensed 
form  the  mechanics  and  the  servant-girls  the  tittle-tattle  and  the 
gossip  of  the  town.  To  make  both  ends  meet  he  had  to  keep  down 
the  size  of  his  paper,  which  was  four  pages  with  three  columns 
of  ten  inches  to  the  page,  but  it  is  wonderful  how  much  news  he 
was  able  to  boil  down  and  print  in  his  limited  sheet.  At  the  start 
The  Sun  was  not  edited  with  any  great  ability  until  Day  secured 
George  W.  Wisner,  who  was  one  of  the  first  American  journalists 
to  realize  the  value  of  the  police  court  as  a  source  of  news.  Al- 
ready Wisner  had  been  a  police  court  reporter  for  the  paper,  for 
which  service  he  received  the  magnificent  wage  of  four  dollars 
per  week.  To  him  the  " assault  and  battery"  cases  of  the  police 
court  were  more  interesting  than  the  attacks  of  Jackson  on  the 
United  States  Bank. 

In  IffiZ  Day  sold  the  paper  to  his  sister's  husband,  Moses  Y. 
Beach,  for  forty  thousand  dollars.  The  Sun  remained  in  the 
Beach  family,  save  for  a  temporary  eclipse  when  it  was  pub- 
lished as  a  daily  religious  newspaper,  until  it  was  sold  to  Charles 
Anderson  jjajia  and  his  associates,  who  assumed  control  on 
January  25, 1868^  After  Day  retired  from  The  Sun  he  became  the 
publisher  of  rf  fie  True  Sun,  which  shed  its  light,  such  as  it  was, 
first  on  November  25,  1842.  It  shone  for  only  a  brief  period  of 
two  years  and  then  set.  This  second  paper  by  Day  should  not 
be  confused  with  The  True  Sun  started  on  January  22,  1835,  by 
W.  F.  Short  and  S.  B.  Butler,  which  suffered  a  total  eclipse 
after  four  days. 

EARLY   LOCAL  RIVALS 

The  success  of  The  Sun  led  to  the  establishment  of  penny 
papers  not  only  in  New  York,  but  also  in  all  the  other  more  im- 
portant cities  of  the  country  such  as  Philadelphia,  Boston,  Balti- 
more, Albany,  etc.  The  immediate  rival  of  The  Sun  in  New  York 
was  The  Transcnvt  started  on  March  14, 1834.  by  three  composi- 


THE 


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THE   FIRST   ISSUE   OF    THE   NEW    YORK   SUN 

(Reduced) 


BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  PENNY  PRESS         189 

tors  Havward.  Lvnde.  and  Stanley.  For  a  while  in  1834  it  looked 
as  though  the  new  paper  was  going  to  eclipse  The  Sun,  as  it 
achieved  the  larger  circulation.  Day  and  Wisner  of  The  Sun 
were  once  indicted  for  criminal  libel  for  an  attack  on  Attree, 
the  editor  of  The  Transcript,  so  bitter  did  the  fight  become  be- 
tween these  two  papers.  The  Transcript  then  began  to  pay  more 
attention  to  political  matters  than  The  Sun:  on  December  4, 
1834,  it  devoted  its  entire  paper  to  the  presidential  message  of 
Andrew  Jackson  and  did  not  print  a  single  advertisement.  Get- 
ting into  the  field  of  its  six-penny  contemporaries,  The  Transcript 
soon  lost  its  lead  over  The  Sun,  and  when  internal  trouble  arose 
among  its  printers  and  owners  it  became  on  July  24,  1839,  only 
an  epitaph  in  the  newspaper  graveyard. 

Before  The  Transcript,  however,  another  penny  paper,  Th& 
J^m,  had  been  born  in  New  York  on  February  18,.1834-r-Jt  was 
published  in  the  interest  of  trade  unions  and  endeavored  to  raise 
the  compensation  for  federated  labor.  Nothing  it  printed  at- 
tracted half  so  much  attention  as  the  way  in  which  the  letters  in 
its  name  were  drawn.  This  unique  head  when  it  first  appeared 
was  thus  described  by  The  Transcript,  on  May  27,  1834:  — 

The  Man,  a  penny  paper  published  in  this  city,  which  advocates  the 
cause  of  the  working  man,  has  provided  itself  with  a  new  head,  quite 
characteristic  of  its  particular  objects.  This  head  is  composed  entirely 
of  farming  utensils  and  mechanic  instruments.  There  is  a  ploughshare, 
a  scythe,  a  rake,  an  axe,  a  hatchet,  a  saw,  a  hammer,  an  augur,  a  square, 
a  drawing-knife,  a  plane,  a  goose,  a  pair  of  shears,  etc.,  etc.  all  arranged 
and  joined  together  so  as  to  make  THE  MAN. 

The  Man  died  an  early  death. 

One  or  two  early  penny  papers  in  New  York  may  be  briefly 
mentioned.  Shortly  after  The  Sun  had  risen  in  New  York,  The 
DailyJ$£e  came  from  the  hive  (located  in  Masonic  Hall)  of 
JoImLrKingslgy  on  March  5.  1834.  Devoted  to  "  literature, 
drama,  police  and  court  proceedings,  news,  etc.,"  it  had  a  short 
life,  in  its  first  appearance  in  1834,  and  a  not  much  longer  in  its 
second  in  183£.  Kingsley  later,  however,  rendered  a  more  effi- 
cient service  to  American  journalism  by  improving  the  method 
for  stereotyping  page  forms  of  newspapers.  Women  were  not 
neglected  by  the  penny  press.  An  attempt  to  reach  them  was 


190       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

made  on  April  29,  1836,  when  The  Ladies'  Morning  Star,  price 
one  cent,  appeared  above  thePnewspaper  horizon.  A  brief 
mention  of  all  the  newspapers  which  started  in  New  York 
from  1830  to  1870  would  fill  a  page  of  this  volume  and  would 
make  about  as  interesting  reading  as  the  catalogue  of  ships  in 
Homer's  "  Iliad." 

POPULARITY  OF  TRANSCRIPTS 

For  some  reason  The  Transcript  was  an  unusually  popular 
name  for  these  early  penny  papers,  just  as  The  Gazette  had  been 
for  the  early  weeklies  of  the  Colonial  Period  and  The  Adver- 
tiser had  been  for  the  first  dailies  of  the  Early  Republic.  Mention 
has  already  been  made  of  The  Transcript  of  Boston  and  New 
York;  reference  to  The  Transcript  of  Philadelphia  will  be  made 
a  little  later.  The  first  penny  paper  in  Albany  was  The  Tran- 
script, started  on  October  12,  1835.  Baltimore  saw  The  Daily 
Transcript,  a  penny  paper  established  on  May  10,  1836.  On 
May  17,  1837,  The  Sun  was  started  at  Baltimore  under  the  edi- 
torship of  Arunah  S.  Abell.  Abell  was  present  when  The  Sun 
first  rose  in  New  York  and  had  helped  make  the  first  entry  of 
The  Public  Ledger  in  Philadelphia.  Within  a  year  Abell's  penny 
paper  had  a  circulation  of  "more  than  twice  as  many  copies  as 
the  oldest  established  journal"  in  that  city.  In  1842  The  Daily 
Whig  and  The  National  Forum  were  established  in  Baltimore  as 
penny  papers  to  support  Henry  Clay  in  his  presidential  aspira- 
tions. 

PENNY   PRESS   IN   BOSTON 

The  success  of  The  Sun  in  New  York  and  that  of  its  satellite, 
The  Orb,  in  Philadelphia  led  to  the  establishment  of  T^ie  1? 
o'clock  News  in  Boston  on  March  13,  1834,  Strictly  speaking, 
the  first  newspaper  to  be  sold  in  Bostonjor  one  cent  was  The 
DailyPenny  Post  which  was  first  set  up  at  28  Franklin  Street 
on  Monclay,  August  26, 1833,  with  a  motto  of  Multum  in  Parvo. 
The  News,  published  by  B.  Hammatt  Norton,  was  issued  daily 
at  twelve  o'clock  and  after  the  second  number  appeared  on 
March  17  the  paper  was  printed  regularly.  At  the  start  The 
News  was  similar  to  The  Sun  of  New  York,  not  only  in  its  sub- 


BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  PENNY  PRESS         191 

ject-matter,  but  also  in  its  mode  of  treatment.  As  time  went  on, 
however,  it  paid  less  attention  to  the  news  and  more  to  literary 
articles  which  it  quoted  from  exchanges.  Because  of  this  fact 
it  fell  behind  The  Sun  as  a  gatherer  of  news  and  became  more 
of  a  literary  publication  for  the  elect  of  Boston. 

A  number  of  German  printers  who  had  been  connected  with 
The  Boston  Daily  Times  started  in  December ,J£&&,  a  morning 
newspaper  of  their  own  called  ^fr^j^friffflffi  ^^lp  It  was  a 
penny  sheet  devoted,  as  its  name  implies,  to  the  interest  of  the 
Native  American  Party.  Successful  at  first,  it  was  quietly  ex- 
piring a  slow  death  when  its  promoters  decided  to  start  a  new 
evening  daily  which  would  be  neutral  in  politics  and  to  let  the 
morning  paper  die  unless  it  showed  more  signs  of  life.  The  new 
afternoon  venture  in  Boston  journalism  was  called  The  Evening 
Herald  and  first  appeared  with  an  edition  of  two  thousand  on 
August  13,  1846.  For  four  months  the  editorial  and  reportorial 
staff  consisted  of  only  two  men.  Its  first  page  was  filled  with 
literary  matter  and  much  of  the  other  three  consisted  of  ma- 
terial "lifted"  from  the  columns  of  The  Morning  Eagle.  The 
Herald,  feeble  as  it  was,  managed  to  survive  financial  diseases 
concomitant  with  newspaper  infancy,  and  at  the  beginning  of 
1842,  it  appeared  with  a  new  dress  as  The  Morning  Herald  and 
fhe  Evenin^JLerald.  An  editorial  spoKe  as  follows  about  the 
penny  press  in  Boston:  "The  competition  of  the  penny  press 
has  caused  a  mental  activity  among  all  classes;  rash  and  impul- 
sive it  may  be,  but,  nevertheless,  far  preferable  to  the  dignified 
stagnation  which,  in  times  of  yore,  was  seldom  broken  by  the 
larger  and  more  expensive  journals."  A  little  later  The  Boston 
Herald,  in  an  editorial  on  the  "dignity  of  the  penny  press,"  said, 
among  other  things :"  The  time  has  come  when  the  respectable 
portion  of  the  community  no  longer  looks  to  the  big  sixpenny, 
lying  oracles  of  politics  for  just  notions  on  government,  exalted 
piety,  or  pure  and  chaste  morality.  The  low  price  of  the  penny 
papers  endows  their  publishers  with  a  philanthropical  spirit 
of  disinterestedness,  and  a  regard  to  the  purity  of  public  morals 
not  dependent  on  pecuniary  considerations.  A  cent  is  but  a  nom- 
inal price  for  a  newspaper,  and,  therefore,  the  publishers  and 
editor  of  a  penny  print  are  moved  only  by  an  earnest  and 


192       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

prayerful  wish  for  the  spiritual  and  temporal  good  of  their  read- 
ers. Much  diurnal  good  may  now  be  had  at  the  very  low  price 
of  one  cent.  It  would  be  folly  to  deny  that  a  pure  and  refined 
taste  has  been  engendered  by  the  cheap  literature  of  the  day." 
This  paper  should  not  be  confused  with  another  member  of  the 
penny  family  of  Boston  which  had  practically  the  same  name, 
TheJSoston  Mwrning  Herald,  but  which  had  been  started  earlier 

and  was  edited  by  William  B.  English. 

•  i"  •* 

PENNY   PRESS   IN   PHILADELPHIA 

When  Day  started  The  Sun  in  New  York  in  1833,  he  had  in  his 
employ  three  printers,  A.  S.  4hp.11T  A.  H^ Simons,  and  William 
Swain.  The  last  printer  later  became  the  foreman  of  its  com- 
posing-room at  twelve  dollars  a  week.  Worn  out  by  having  to 
work  overtime  Swain  was  compelled  to  take  a  vacation;  upon 
his  return  he  was  not  able  to  make  satisfactory  settlement  for 
the  time  he  was  absent,  and  withdrew  from  The  Sun,  taking  Abell 
and  Simons  with  him.  The  trio,  convinced  of  the  wonderful  pos- 
sibilities of  the  penny  press,  but  satisfied  that  New  York  was 
already  well  served,  went  to  Philadelphia  where  they  brought 
out,  on  March  25,  1836,  the  first  number  of  The  Public 
Being  practical  printers,  they  were  unable  to  look  after  the  edi- 
torial end  of  the  paper  and  secured  for  this  work  Russell  Jarvis, 
whose  work  on  The  United  States  Telegraph  had  already  at- 
tracted attention.  The  new  paper  adopted  as  its  editorial  policy: 
"While  The  Public  Ledger  shall  worship  no  man,  it  shall  vitu- 
perate none.  The  Public  Ledger  will  be  fearless  and  independent, 
applauding  virtue  and  reproving  vice  wherever  found,  un- 
awed  by  station,  uninfluenced  by  wealth."  The  Ledger  was  not 
quite  so  successful  as  The  Sun  in  New  York  and  at  the  start 
was  published  under  great  handicaps,  financially  and  otherwise. 
But  when  it  started  to  attack  the  United  States  Bank  in  the 
days  of  the  "Banking  War,"  it  became  very  popular  and  grew 
in  "stature  and  wisdom."  The  Ledger  continued  to  be  a  penny 
paper  until  1864  when  it  was  sold  to  George  W.  Childs  who  ad- 
vanced the  price  to  two  cents  on  account  of  the  greatly  increased 
cost  of  white  paper. 

A  few  days  before  The  Ledger  was  started,  The  Daily  Tran- 


BEGINNINGS   OF  THE  PENNY  PRESS        193 

script,  edited  by  Frederick  West  and  published  by  William  L. 
Drane,  had  made  its  appearance  in  Philadelphia.  The  Transcript 
soon  united  with  The  Ledger,  in  September.  1836,  and  the  union 
was  called  The  Public  Ledger  and  Daily  Transcrivt.  TheVeJo,  a 
distinctly  campaign  publication,  had  been  started  on  April  17, 
1834,  at  one  cent  a  copy:  it  had  for  its  motto,  "Old  Hickory, 
Some  Spun,  and  Hard  Money."  The  Orb,  another  penny  paper 
founded  about  the  same  time,  soon  Disappeared.  The  Daily 
Focus,  a  rival  of  The  Public  Ledger  in  the  penny  field,  attacked 
Jarvis,  the  editor  of  the  latter  paper,  so  relentlessly  and  so  bit- 
terly that  he  finally  brought  suit  against  the  owners  of  The  Focus, 
Turner,  Davis,  and  Balicau.  The  case  was  never  reached  on  the 
docket  and  The  Focus  was  hidden  among  the  many  other  penny 
papers  which  attempted  to  dispute  the  supremacy  of  The  Pub- 
lic Ledger  for  a  time  and  then  disappeared. 

BENNETT  AND   HIS   " HERALD" 

In  New  York  The  Sun  and  The  Transcript  were  being  printed 
in  1835  on  Ann  Street  in  the  plant  of  Anderson  &  Smith.  Into 
their  shop  came  James  Gordon  Bennett  from  Philadelphia  where 
he  had  been  connected  with  The  Pennsylvanian.  The  final  result 
of  this  conference  was  that  the  firm  agreed  to  add  another 
paper  to  their  presses.  Called  The  New  Ywk  HfrM}  it  was 
published  by  James  Gordon  Bennett  &  Company  in  the  cellar 
of  Number  20  Wall  Street.  On  May"fi,  isaa.  the  first  number 
appeared  with  Bennett  as  editor,  publisher,  advertising  director, 
circulation  manager. 

The  assertion  has  often  been  made  that  Bennett  started  The 
Herald  with  five  hundred  dollars,  two  wooden  chairs,  and  an 
old  dry-goods  box.  But  he  had  something  more:  his  chief  asset 
was  his  newspaper  experience  —  often  bought  dearly.  He  had 
been  editor  of  a  Sunday  paper,  The  New  York  Courier,  writer 
on  political  topics  in  The  National  Advocate,  Washington  cor- 
respondent for  The  New  York  Enquirer,  associate  editor  of  The 
Courier  and  Enquirer,  and  owner  of  The  New  York  Globe,  a  two- 
cent  campaign  organ  which  he  started  on  October  29,  1832,  to 
support  Jackson  and  Van  Buren. 

From  the  start  The  Herald  had  its  own  troubles.    It  sold  for 


194       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

one  cent  a  copy  and  consequently  its  circulation  brought  in 
only  a  very  limited  revenue.  The  Sun  and  The  Transcript  ob- 
jected to  being  printed  at  the  same  plant  as  The  Herald  and 
soon  withdrew  from  Anderson  &  Smith.  A  big  fire  on  Ann 
Street  August  12,  destroyed  the  printing-plant  and  caused 
The  Herald  to  suspend  until  August  31.  But  The  Herald  con- 
tinued to  grow  and  had  to  seek  larger  quarters.  On  April  6, 
1836,  it  moved  again,  this  time  from  Broadway  to  Clinton 
Hall  Building.  Four  months  later  the  price  per  copy  was  in- 
creased to  two  cents. 

At  the  end  of  the  year  1836  the  following  re*sume*  was  pub- 
lished:— 

The  surprising  success  of  The  Herald  has  astonished  myself.  I  began 
on  five  hundred  dollars,  was  twice  burnt  out,  once  had  my  office  robbed, 
have  been  opposed  and  calumniated  by  the  whole  newspaper  Press, 
ridiculed,  contemned,  threatened,  yet  here  I  am,  at  the  end  of  fifteen 
months,  with  an  establishment,  the  materials  of  which  are  nearly 
worth  five  thousand  dollars,  nearly  all  paid  for,  and  a  prospect  of 
making  The  Herald  yield  in  two  years  a  revenue  of  at  least  thirty  thou- 
sand dollars  a  year;  yet  I  care  not,  I  disregard,  I  value  not  money.  I 
rise  early,  and  work  late,  for  character,  reputation,  the  good  of  man- 
kind, the  civilization  of  my  species.  It  is  my  passion,  my  delight,  my 
thought  by  day,  and  my  dream  by  night  to  conduct  The  Herald,  and  to 
show  the  world  and  posterity,  that  a  newspaper  can  be  made  the 
greatest,  most  fascinating,  most  powerful  organ  of  civilization  that 
genius  ever  yet  dreamed  of.  The  dull,  ignorant,  miserable  barbarian 
papers  around  me,  are  incapable  of  arousing  the  moral  sensibilities,  or 
pointing  out  fresh  paths  for  the  intellectual  career  of  an  energetic 
generation. 

For  the  sake  of  comparison  and  for  the  purpose  of  showing 
the  aim  of  the  paper  the  following  quotation  is  made  from 
Volume  I,  Number  1 :  — 

James  Gordon  Bennett  &  Co.  commence  this  morning  the  publica- 
tion of  The  Morning  Herald,  a  new  daily  paper,  price  $3  a  year,  or 
six  cents  per  week,  advertising  at  the  ordinary  rates.  It  is  issued  from 
the  publishing  office,  No.  20  Wall  Street,  and  also  from  the  printing- 
office,  No.  34  Ann  Street,  3d  story,  at  both  of  which  places_orders  will 
be  thankfully  received. 

The  next  number  will  be  issued  on  Monday  morning  —  this  brief 
suspension  necessarily  taking  place  in  order  to  give  the  publishers  time 


BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  PENNY  PRESS         195 

and  opportunity  to  arrange  the  routes  of  carriers,  organize  a  general 
system  of  distribution  for  the  city,  and  allow  subscribers  and  patrons 
to  furnish  correctly  their  names  and  residences.  It  will  then  be  re- 
sumed and  regularly  continued. 

In  the  commencement  of  an  enterprise  of  the  present  kind  it  is  not 
necessary  to  say  much.  "We  know,"  says  the  fair  Ophelia,  "what  we 
are,  but  know  not  what  we  may  be."  Pledges  and  promises,  in  these 
enlightened  times,  are  not  exactly  so  current  in  the  world  as  Safety- 
Fund  Notes,  or  even  the  U.S.  Bank  bills.  We  have  had  an  experience 
of  nearly  fifteen  years  in  conducting  newspapers.  On  that  score  we  can 
not  surely  fail  in  knowing  at  least  how  to  build  up  a  reputation  and 
establishment  of  our  own.  In  debuts  of  this  kind  many  talk  of  prin- 
ciple —  political  principle  —  party  principle,  as  a  sort  of  steel-trap  to 
catch  the  public.  We  mean  to  be  perfectly  understood  on  this  point, 
and  therefore  openly  disclaim  all  steel-traps,  all  principle,  as  it  is 
called  —  all  party  —  all  politics.  Our  only  guide  shall  be  good,  sound, 
practical  common  sense,  applicable  to  the  business  and  bosoms  of  men 
engaged  in  every-day  life.  We  shall  support  no  party  —  be  the  organ 
of  no  faction  or  coterie,  and  care  nothing  for  any  election  or  any  can- 
didate from  president  down  to  a  constable.  We  shall  endeavor  to 
record  facts  on  every  public  and  proper  subject,  stripped  of  verbiage 
and  coloring,  with  comments  when  suitable,,  just,  independent,  fearless, 
and  good-tempered.  If  The  Herald  wants  the  mere  expansion  which  many 
journals  possess,  we  shall  try  to  make  it  up  in  industry,  good  taste, 
brevity,  variety,  point,  piquancy,  and  cheapness.  It  is  equally  intended 
for  the  great  masses  of  the  community — the  merchant,  mechanic,  work- 
ing people  —  the  private  family  as  well  as  the  public  hotel  —  the  jour- 
neyman and  his  employer  —  the  clerk  and  his  principal.  There  are  in 
this  city  at  least  150,000  persons  who  glance  over  one  or  more  news- 
papers every  day.  Only  42,000  daily  sheets  are  issued  to  supply  them. 
We  have  plenty  of  room,  therefore,  without  jostling  neighbors,  rivals, 
or  friends,  to  pick  up  at  least  twenty  or  thirty  thousand  for  The  Herald, 
and  leave  something  for  others  who  come  after  us.  By  furnishing  a 
daily  morning  paper  at  the  low  price  of  $3  a  year,  which  may  be  taken 
for  any  shorter  period  (for  a  week)  at  the  same  rate,  and  making  it 
at  the  same  time  equal  to  any  of  the  high-priced  papers  for  intelligence, 
good  taste,  sagacity,  and  industry,  there  is  not  a  person  in  the  city, 
male  or  female,  that  may  not  be  able  to  say,  "Well,  I  have  got  a  paper 
of  my  own  which  will  tell  me  all  about  what's  doing  in  the  world.  I 'm 
busy  now,  but  I'll  put  it  in  my  pocket,  and  read  it  at  my  leisure." 

With  these  few  words  as  "grace  before  meat,"  we  commit  ourselves 
and  our  cause  to  the  public,  with  perfect  confidence  in  our  own  capacity 
to  publish  a  paper  that  will  seldom  pall  on  the  appetite,  provided  we 
receive  moderate  encouragement  to  unfold  our  resources  and  purposes 
in  the  columns  of  The  Morning  Herald. 


196       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

The  contents  of  the  first  issue  of  The  Herald  were  in  striking 
contrast  not  only  to  the  previous  work  Bennett  had  done  for 
newspapers,  but  also  to  the  contributions  he  was  soon  to  make 
to  American  journalism.  Before  he  started  The  Herald  he  had 
contributed  to  the  leading  literary  papers  of  the  day;  he  had 
written  heavy  political  editorials  on  men  and  matters  of  moment; 
he  had  lectured  on  political  economy  in  the  old  chapel  of  the 
Dutch  Reformed  Church  on  the  corner  of  Ann  and  Nassau 
Streets.  Yet  he  made  The  Herald  —  to  quote  the  language  used 
at  that  time  —  "  light  and  spicy." 

NEW   YORK   PAPERS   OF  BENNETT'S   TIME 

His  reasons  for  making  The  Herald  what  he  did  may  possibly 
be  found  in  the  competition  he  had  to  meet  at  that  time  in  New 
York.  To  sell  his  papers  he  had  to  bring  out  a  publication  that 
was  different  from  those  of  his  rivals  already  in  the  field.  In  1835 
New  York  had  the  following  daily  papers:  The  New  York  Ameri- 
can, The  Mercantile  Advertiser  and  New  York  Advocate,  The 
New  York  Daily  Advertiser,  The  Morning  Courier  and  Enquirer, 
The  New  York  Journal  of  Commerce,  The  New  York  Commercial 
Advertiser,  The  Business  Reporter  and  Merchants'  and  Mechanics' 
Advertiser,  The  New  York  Times,  The  Evening  Post,  The  Evening 
Star,  The  New  York  Sun,  The  Man,  The  Jeffersonian,  The  New 
York  Gazette  and  General  Advertiser,  and  The  New  York  Tran- 
script. In  addition  to  these  fifteen  daily  papers  there  were  eleven 
semi-weeklies  and  thirty-one  weeklies  in  the  city.  New  York, 
like  Athens  of  old,  has  always  been  ready  to  hear  the  new  thing 
—  especially  in  newspapers. 

FREE   FIELD   FOR  BENNETT 

No  " sacred  cows"  browsed  in  Bennett's  fields.  He  even  at- 
tacked the  church  regardless  of  denomination.  He  wrote  the 
first  newspaper  accounts  of  the  annual  meetings  of  the  various 
religious  organizations  —  much  to  the  annoyance  of  both  pul- 
pit and  pew.  He  reported  the  proceedings  of  the  police  court 
with  a  freedom  which  even  enlarged  the  time-honored  freedom 
of  the  press.  In  relating  scandal  with  full  particulars  that  filled 
columns  of  his  paper,  he  seemed  to  think  the  more  he  shocked 


BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  PENNY  PRESS        197 

people  the  more  they  would  read  his  paper.  If  he  was  assaulted 
either  on  the  street  or  in  his  office,  he  gave  a  full  report  the  next 
morning  under  the  standing  head,  "  Bennett  Thrashed  Again." 
The  announcement  of  his  engagement  which  he  published  in 
The  Herald  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  specimens  of  news- 
paper literature.  In  a  certain  sense,  he  often  put  his  own  private 
journals  in  his  paper  as  may  be  found  in  the  following  editorial 
printed  in  1836:  — 

We  published  yesterday  the  principal  items  of  the  foreign  news,  re- 
ceived by  the  Sheffield,  being  eight  days  later  than  our  previous  ar- 
rivals. Neither  The  Sun  nor  The  Transcript  had  a  single  item  on  the 
subject.  The  Sun  did  not  even  know  of  its  existence.  The  large  papers 
in  Wall  street  had  also  the  news,  but  as  the  editors  are  lazy,  ignorant, 
indolent,  blustering  blockheads,  one  and  all,  they  did  not  pick  out 
the  cream  and  serve  it  out  as  we  did.j  The  Herald  alone  knows  how  to 
dish  up  the  foreign  news,  or  indeed  domestic  events,  in  a  readable 
style.  Every  reader,  numbering  between  thirty  and  forty  thousand  daily, 
acknowledges  this  merit  in  the  management  of  our  paper.  We  do  not, 
as  the  Wall  street  lazy  editors  do,  come  down  to  our  office  about  ten  or 
twelve  o'clock,  pull  out  a  Spanish  cigar,  take  up  a  pair  of  scissors,  puff 
and  cut,  cut  and  puff  for  a  couple  of  hours,  and  then  adjourn  to  Del- 
monico's  to  eat,  drink,  gormandize,  and  blow  up  our  contemporaries. 
We  rise  in  the  morning  at  five  o'clock,  write  our  leading  editorials,  squibs, 
sketches,  etc.,  before  breakfast.  From  nine  till  one  we  read  all  our  papers 
and  original  communications,  the  latter  being  more  numerous  than  those 
of  any  other  office  in  New  York.  From  these  we  pick  out  facts,  thoughts, 
hints  and  incidents,  sufficient  to  make  up  a  column  of  original  spicy 
articles.  We  also  give  audiences  to  visitors,  gentlemen  on  business,  and 
some  of  the  loveliest  ladies  in  New  York,  who  call  to  subscribe  —  Heaven 
bless  them!  At  one  we  sally  out  among  the  gentlemen  and  loafers  of 
Wall  street  —  find  out  the  state  of  the  money  market,  return,  finish 
the  next  day's  paper  —  close  every  piece  of  business  requiring  thought, 
sentiment,  feeling,  or  philosophy,  before  four  o'clock.  We  then  dine 
moderately  and  temperately  —  read  our  proofs  —  take  in  cash  and 
advertisements,  which  are  increasing  like  smoke  —  and  close  the  day 
by  going  to  bed  always  at  ten  o'clock,  seldom  later.  That's  the  way 
to  conduct  a  paper  with  spirit  and  success. 

VITUPERATION   OF  TIME 

But  in  order  to  understand  Bennett  and  his  newspaper,  it  is 
necessary  to  be  familiar  with  the  journalism  of  the  time.  Edi- 
tors were  just  beginning  to  find  out  that  the  pen  was  mightier 


198       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

than  the  sword,  the  pistol,  or  the  walking-stick.  They  filled  their 
^columns  with  malicious  squibs  and  furious  diatribes  against 
••  each  other.  The  vituperation  of  the  press  knew  no  bounds.  By 
way  of  illustration  the  following  epithets  used  by  Park  Benjamin 
in  The  Signal,  by  James  Watson  Webb  in  The  Courier  and 
Enquirer,  and  by  M.  M.  Noah  in  The  Evening  Star  may  be 
given:  "Obscene  vagabond,"  " Loathsome  and  leprous  slanderer 
and  libeler,"  " Unprincipled  conductor,"  "Rascal,"  "Rogue," 
"Cheat,"  "Veteran  blackguard,"  "Habitual  Liar,"  "Polluted 
wretch,"  "Foreign  vagabond,"  "Foreign  imposter,"  "Monster," 
"Daring infidel,"  "Pestilential  scoundrel,"  "Venomous  reptile," 
ad  infinitum. 

In  answer  to  the  charge  that  he  was  once  a  pedler  in  the  streets 
of  Glasgow,  Bennett  once  replied  in  his  paper  as  follows :  — 

I  am,  and  have  been,  a  pedler  —  and  part  of  my  name  is  Gordon. 
This  I  admit.  From  my  youth  up  I  have  been  a  pedler,  not  of  tapes  and 
laces,  but  of  thoughts,  feelings,  lofty  principles,  and  intellectual  truths. 
I  am  now  a  wholesale  dealer  in  the  same  line  of  business,  and  people 
generally  believe  I  have  quite  a  run,  and  what  is  better,  no  dread  of 
suspension.  I  was  educated  and  intended  for  a  religious  sect,  but  the 
Almighty,  in  his  wisdom,  meant  me  for  truth  and  mankind,  and  I  will 
fulfil  my  destiny  in  spite  of  all  the  opposition  made  to  me  either  in  the 
old  or  new  hemisphere.  Yes,  I  have  been  a  pedler,  and  am  still  a  pedler 
of  the  thoughts,  and  feelings,  and  high  imaginings  of  the  past  and  present 
ages.  I  peddle  my  wares  as  Homer  did  his  —  as  Shakespeare  did  his  — 
as  every  great  intellectual  and  mighty  pedler  of  the  past  did  —  and  when 
I  shall  have  finished  my  peddling  in  this  world,  I  trust  I  shall  be  per- 
mitted to  peddle  in  a  better  and  happier  region  for  ever  and  ever. 

Much  has  been  made  of  two  articles  which  appeared  in  The 
British  Foreign  Quarterly  Review  and  which  attacked  most  bit- 
terly the  newspapers  of  the  United  States  in  general  and  The 
New  York  Herald  in  particular.  The  Westminster  Review  an- 
swered these  charges  sufficiently  when  it  remarked  that  Ameri- 
can journalism  was  no  worse  than  English.  There  is  every  reason 
to  believe  that  the  articles  in  The  Foreign  Quarterly  Review  were 
not  written  in  good  faith. 

INNOVATIONS  OF  "THE   HERALD" 

What  really  made  The  New  York  Herald,  however,  yet  remains 
to  be  outlined.  In  the  second  number  a  Wall  Street  feature  was 


BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  PENNY  PRESS        199 

added  to  the  paper.  Irregularly  at  first,  these  articles  on  finance 
proved  so  popular  that  they  became  a  regular  department.  In 
addition  to  the  comment  about  the  money  market,  stock  quo- 
tations were  given.  According  to  The  Herald,  it  was  "the  only 
paper  in  the  city  which  gives  authentic  and  daily  reports  of 
Wall  Street  operations,  stocks,  and  the  money  market."  Until 
1838  the  department  was  conducted  entirely  by  Bennett.  In 
reviewing  the  history  of  this  department,  he  said  in  The  Herald 
of  February  20,  1869:  - 

The  daily  financial  report  was  begun  by  us  when  we  started  The 
Herald.  We  made  it  personally.  Getting  through  that  part  of  our  va- 
ried labors  that  could  be  done  at  an  early  hour,  we  went  to  Wall  Street, 
saw  for  ourselves  what  was  in  progress  there,  and  returned  with  our 
report  sketched  out  in  fragmentary  fly  leaves  of  letters  or  other  handy 
scraps  of  paper.  We  told  the  truth,  for  we  were  in  the  interest  of  the 
public;  and  the  truth  of  that  locality  was  not  complimentary  in  those 
days  any  more  than  it  would  be  now.  War  was  made  upon  us  right  and 
left  by  the  men  whose  little  games  were  spoiled  whenever  the  public 
came  to  know  what  they  were  at;  and,  strangest  of  all  things  for  a  war 
originating  in  that  quarter,  it  was  a  "moral  war."  We  lived  through  it, 
however. 

Compelled  to  delegate  our  labor  in  the  preparation  of  a  financial 
report,  we  have  always  meant  and  still  mean  to  keep  that  report  as 
honest  as  it  was  in  its  origin;  to  constitute  it  a  legitimate  and  exact 
record  of  what  is  honestly  done  in  Wall  Street,  and  an  exposure  —  a  lay- 
ing bare  to  the  eyes  of  the  public  of  what  is  dishonestly  done  there.  We 
will  compound  none  of  the  villainies  with  the  fellows  who  trade  on 
public  credulity  to  abuse  public  confidence.  One  journal  shall  tell  what 
Wall  Street  really  is  and  what  is  done  there. 

Wall  Street  had  some  excellent  newspaper  stories,  as  Bennett 
soon  found  out. 

After  the  fire  which  destroyed  the  Ann  Street  printing-plant, 
Bennett  announced  the  policy  which,  carried  out  in  every  detail, 
contributed  much  to  the  success  of  The  Herald.  That  policy  was : 
11  In  every  species  of  news  The  Herald  mil  be  one  of  the  earliest  of 
the  early."  At  the  same  time  Bennett  announced  this  policy  he 
also  said:  "We  mean  to  procure  intelligent  correspondents  in 
London,  Paris,  and  Washington,  and  measures  are  already 
adopted  for  that  purpose."  When  the  Sirius  and  Great  Western 
crossed  the  Atlantic,  with  steam  as  the  motive  power,  Bennett 


200       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

enlarged  the  foreign  correspondence  of  the  paper.  For  years 
The  Herald  was  first  in  foreign  news.  Bennett  did  not  neglect 
local  and  national  news.  After  he  had  found  the  value  of  such 
items  to  the  paper  he  went  over  New  York  with  a  net  and 
gathered  in  —  with  apologies  to  The  New  York  Times  —  "all 
the  news  that's  fit  to  print,"  along  with  some  that  wasn't. 
He  developed  his  own  news  bureau  for  the  interior.  He  printed 
"news-slips"  which  were  sent  free  by  express  mail  to  the  news- 
papers in  the  interior.  These  "news-slips,"  which  reached  pub- 
lishers one  mail  in  advance  of  the  regular  issues  of  The  Herald, 
took  the  place  of  the  telegraph  news  service  of  the  Associated 
Press  of  to-day.  This  free  news  service  placed  papers  receiving 
the  same  under  obligation  to  see  that  The  Herald  got  all  the 
worth-while  news  from  their  territory  —  and  got  it  before  the 
other  New  York  papers. 

In  building  up  The  Herald,  Bennett  had  the  active  cooperation 
•  of  Frederick  Hudson,  who  had  the  honor  of  being  managing 
director.  Of  the  latter,  Samuel  Bowles,  the  elder,  once  said, 
while  editor  of  The  Springfield  Republican,  that  Hudson  was 
the  greatest  organizer  of  a  mere  newspaper  that  this  country 
has  ever  seen. 

PENNY   PAPERS   SOLD   BY   BOYS 

The  conservative  Journal  of  Commerce,  a  six-penny  paper,  on 
June  29,  1835,  published  an  account  of  the  penny  press  in 
New  York  which  described  not  only  the  conditions  in  New  York, 
but  those  in  other  cities  which  had  penny  newspapers :  — 

It  is  but  three  or  four  years  since  the  first  penny  paper  was  estab- 
lished. Now  there  are  half  a  dozen  or  more  of  them  in  this  city,  with  an 
aggregate  circulation  of  twenty  or  thirty  thousand,  and  perhaps  more. 
These  issues  exceed  those  of  the  large  papers,  and,  for  aught  we  see, 
they  are  conducted  with  as  much  talent,  and  in  point  of  moral  char- 
acter we  think  candidly  they  are  superior  to  their  six-penny  contem- 
poraries. .  .  .  They  are  less  partisan  in  politics  than  the  large  papers, 
and  more  decidedly  American,  with  one  or  two  exceptions.  The  manner 
in  which  their  pecuniary  affairs  are  conducted  shows  how  much  may 
come  of  small  details.  They  are  circulated  on  the  London  plan,  the 
editors  and  publishers  doing  no  more  than  to  complete  the  manu- 
facture of  the  papers,  when  they  are  sold  to  the  newsmen  or  carriers  at 


BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  PENNY  PRESS        201 

67  cents  per  100.  The  carriers  distribute  the  papers,  and  on  Saturday 
collect  from  each  subscriber  six  cents,  so  that  for  each  call  their  net 
income  to  the  carriers  is  but  one  third  of  a  cent.  We  wish  our  penny 
associates  all  success,  hoping  that  they  will  grow  wise,  good,  and  great, 
until  they  make  every  sixpenny  paper  ashamed  that  tells  a  lie,  or  be- 
trays its  country  for  the  sake  of  party,  or  does  any  other  base  thing. 

For  some  reason  the  owners  of  the  six-penny  political  sheets 
did  not  consider  it  strictly  ethical  to  sell  their  wares  on  city 
streets.  Subscribers  received  their  papers  by  carriers,  and  tran- 
sient purchasers  had  to  go  to  the  counters  of  newspaper  offices. 
The  penny  press,  however,  did  not  wait  to  enroll  annual  sub- 
scribers, but  tried  to  market  its  merchandise  daily  through 
boys.  The  pages  of  the  early  penny  papers  fairly  bristled  with 
advertisements  of  "Boys  Wanted."  The  first  issue  of  The 
Public  Ledger  in  Philadelphia  contained  a  small  advertisement 
to  this  effect :  — 

50  MEN  AND  BOYS  can  make  it  an  advantageous  business  to 
circulate  this  paper.  Apply  at  the  office  of  The  Ledger  Nos.  38-39 
Arcade. 

Early  issues  of  The  Boston  12  o'clock  News  contained  this  ad- 
vertisement :  — 

WANTED  20  boys  neatly  dressed  and  excellent  deportment  to  sell 
The  Daily  News  —  None  need  apply  except  those  who  intend  to  en- 
gage permanently.  30^  for  every  100  sold. 

Possibly  The  Sun  of  New  York  was  the  first  to  use  news  boys 
in  this  way.  Almost  at  the  start  that  paper  contained  a  notice :  — 

TO  THE  UNEMPLOYED.  A  number  of  steady  men  can  find  em- 
ployment by  vending  this  paper.  A  liberal  discount  is  allowed  to  those 
who  buy  to  sell  again. 

t  For  the  first  time  journalism  was  brought  directly  to  the 
I  people.  By  making  the  daily  papers  easy  to  buy,  the  penny  press 

/  brought  something  of  a  revolution  into  American  journalism. 

*v  Its  system  of  marketing  its  products  undoubtedly  had  much  to 
\lo  with  its  success. 


202       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

DIFFERENCES  BETWEEN   PENNY  AND   SIX-PENNY   SHEETS 

The  penny  pager  on  account  of  its  size  was  forced  to  give  its 
n^w^Jn^mairspace.  For  example,  the  first  issue  of  The  Sun  in 
New  York  gave  an  account  of  a  revolution  in  Mexico  in  four  lines 
which  included  a  statement  of  the  source  of  the  item.  For  the 
most  part,  the  penny  sheet  printed  its  news  on  inside  pages: 
the  first  page  was  given  over  either  to  advertising  or  to  articles 
usually  quoted  from  exchanges.  The  Sun,  to  quote  its  first  issue 
again,  had  on  its  front  page  a  supposedly  humorous  story  about 
an  Irish  captain  and  the  duels  he  fought;  early  issues  of  The  New 
York  Transcript  devoted  their  front  pages  to  a  continued  story, 
"Edward  and  Julia;  a  Reminiscence  of  Forty  Years  Since"; 
page  one  of  the  first  issue  of  The  Daily  Evening  Transcript 
in  Boston  was  composed  entirely  of  advertisements.  At  the 
start  the  editor  of  the  penny  paper  usually  culled  his  material 
'.  from  the  pages  of  his  more  verbose  six-penny  contemporary: 
later,  he  either  went  himself  or  sent  a  reporter  to  gather  such 
|items. 

/The  chief  distinction  between  the  sixpenny jsheets  and  the 
penny  papers  was  that  the  former  featured  the  news  of  legisla- 
tive chambers  and  the  latter  that  of  the  _courts.  It  must  be 
franklyHadmitted  that  in  some  instances  the  penny  press  went  to 
the  extreme  limit  in  reporting  criminal  cases,  but  in  so  doing 
it  showed  sound  newspaper  psychology.  What  makes  a  short 
piece  of  fiction  so  interesting  is  its  account  of  some  struggle  or 
."  scrap,"  whether  it  be  the  conflict  in  a  character  study  where 
two  natures  battle  against  each  other,  or  whether  it  be  the  fight 
of  two  rivals  for  the  hand  of  Fair  Ophelia.  How  well  James  Gor- 
don Bennett  knew  this  has  been  outlined  elsewhere.  In  reporting 
the  happenings  of  the  police  court  the  " scrap"  element,  which 
gave  value  to  the  accounts,  was  present  in  double  strength: 
first,  there  was  the  story  of  the  physical  combat  which  brought 
the  contestants  to  court;  second,  there  was  the  legal  battle  be- 
tween their  lawyers.  \fhe  penny  papers  went  on  the  principle  v 
of  what  the  Lord  let  happen  ought  to  be  printed  in  their  sheets! 
Such  contentions  of  the  penny  press  brought  upon  it  the  severe 
criticism  of  the  more  cultured  in  the  community.  It  was  not 


BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  PENNY  PRESS         203 

uncommon  for  the  subscribers  of  the  more  conservative  papers 
to  write  letters  similar  to  the  following :  — 

*  Your  paper  should  take  a  more  dignified  stand;  and  not  condescend 
to  notice  the  assaults  of  the  degraded  penny  press.  The  price  of  your 
journal  is  such  that  it  is  taken  only  by  readers  of  the  more  intelligent 
classes;  readers  who  despise  the  vulgarity  of  the  penny  newspapers, 
and  who  have  cause  to  feel  themselves  affronted  when  you  give  so  large 
a  space,  or  any  space,  indeed,  to  a  refutation  of  their  absurdities.  It 
seems  to  me,  that  a  proper  respect  for  your  own  dignity,  as  well  as  a 
proper  respect  for  those  into  whose  hands  your  lucubrations  chiefly 
fall,  ought  to  restrain  you  from  giving  additional  circulation  to  the  trash 
of  the  minor  prints,  which  are  suited  only  to  the  taste  and  capacities  of 
the  lower  classes  of  people. 

It  was  in  answer  to  just  this  letter  that  William  Leggett 
replied :  — 

If  it  were  true  that  the  readers  of  the  penny  papers  are  chiefly  con- 
fined to  what  our  correspondent  chooses  to  term  the  "lower  classes," 
it  would  be  no  argument  against  them,  but  in  their  favour.  Those  who 
come  within  the  embrace  of  that  exotic  phrase  are  in  immense  majority 
of  the  American  people.  It  includes  all  the  honest  and  labouring 
poor.  It  includes  those  whose  suffrages  decide  the  principles  of  our 
government;  on  whose  conduct  rests  the  reputation  of  our  country; 
and  whose  mere  breath  is  the  tenure  by  which  we  hold  all  our  dearest 
political,  religious,  and  social  rights.  How  ineffably  important  it  is, 
then,  that  the  intelligence  of  these  "lower  classes"  should  be  cultivated; 
that  their  moral  sense  should  be  quickened;  and  that  they  should  have 
the  means  within  their  reach  of  learning  the  current  history  of  the 
times,  of  observing  the  measures  of  their  public  servants,  and  of  be- 
coming prepared  to  exercise  with  wisdom  the  most  momentous  privi- 
lege of  free-men.  This  great  desideratum  the  penny  press  supplies,  not 
as  well  and  thoroughly,  perhaps,  as  the  philanthropist  could  wish,  but 
to  such  a  degree  as  to  be  necessarily  productive  of  immense  benefit 
to  society.  It  communicates  knowledge  to  those  who  had  no  means  of 
acquiring  it.  It  calls  into  exercise  minds  that  before  rusted  unused.  It 
elevates  vast  numbers  of  men  from  the  abjectness  of  mere  animal 
condition,  to  the  nobler  station  of  intelligent  beings.  If  usefulness  con- 
stitutes the  true  measure  of  dignity,  the  penny  press  deserves  pre-emi- 
nence, as  well  on  account  of  the  character  of  its  readers,  as  the  extent 
of  its  circulation.  He  who  addresses  himself  to  intelligent  and  cultivated 
minds,  has  a  critic  in  each  reader,  and  the  influence  of  his  opinions  must 
necessarily  be  circumscribed.  But  he  who  addresses  himself  to  the  mass 
of  the  people,  has  readers  whose  opinions  are  yet  to  be  formed;  whose 


204       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

minds  are  ductile  and  open  to  new  impressions,  and  whose  intellectual 
characters  he,  in  some  measure,  moulds.  He  becomes  the  thinker,  in 
fact,  for  a  vast  number  of  his  fellow-beings.  His  mind  transfuses  itself 
through  many  bodies.  His  station  renders  him,  not  an  individual,  but 
a  host;  not  one,  but  legion.  Is  this  not  a  vocation  of  inherent  dignity? 
—  to  address,  daily,  myriads  of  men,  not  in  words  that  fall  on  cold  and 
inattentive  ears,  and  are  scarce  heard,  to  be  immediately  forgotten; 
but  in  language  clothed  with  all  that  undefmable  influence  which  typog- 
raphy possesses  over  oral  communication,  and  claiming  attention 
not  in  the  hurry  of  business,  or  amidst  the  distractions  of  a  crowded 
assemblage,  but  when  the  thoughts  have  leisure  to  concentrate  them- 
selves upon  it,  and  follow  the  writer  in  all  the  windings  of  his  argument. 
If  the  censures  were  well  founded  which  are  lavished  on  "The  vile 
penny  press,"  as  some  of  the  larger  papers  are  prone  to  term  their 
cheaper  rivals,  they  should  but  provoke  minds  governed  by  right  prin- 
ciples to  a  more  earnest  endeavour  to  reform  the  character  of  an  instru- 
ment, which  must  be  powerful,  either  for  evil  or  for  good.  That  they 
are  so  vile  we  do  not  admit.  We  have  found,  ourselves,  honourable 
and  courteous  antagonists  among  them;  and  if  those  who  apply  to  them 
the  harshest  epithets,  would  treat  them  instead,  with  respectful  con- 
sideration, copying  from  their  columns  as  readily  as  from  those  of  other 
journals,  when  intrinsic  circumstances  presented  no  particular  motive 
of  preference,  and  contesting  their  errors  of  opinion  on  terms  of  equal 
controversy,  they  would  do  far  more  towards  raising  the  character  and 
increasing  the  usefulness  of  that  important  branch  of  popular  literature, 
than  general  and  sweeping  condemnation  can  possibly  do  to  degrade  it. 
For  ourselves,  professing  that  our  main  object  is  to  promote  the  cause 
of  truth  in  politics  and  morals,  we  should  consider  ourselves  acting 
with  palpable  inconsistency,  if  we  were  governed,  in  any  degree,  by  so 
narrow  a  principle  of  exclusion  as  that  which  our  correspondent  re- 
commends. That  newspaper  best  consults  its  real  dignity  which  never 
loses  sight  of  the  dignity  of  truth,  nor  avoids  any  opportunity  of  ex- 
tending its  influence. 


SUCCESS   OF  NEW  PRESS 

Not  all  of  the  six-penny  newspapers,  however,  were  so  chari- 
table toward  their  younger  brethren  found  in  the  penny  press. 
They  resented  the  strenuous  competition  which  they  must  meet 
in  the  gathering  and  selling  of  news.  The  aristocrats  of  the  day 
thought  that  the  newspaper  was  their  especial  property  and 
should  be  published  for  them  exclusively.  Ut  was  something  of 
an  honor  before  the  establishment  of  the  penny  press  to  be  a 
newspaper  subscriber^it  was  somewhat  similar  to  having  a  piano 


BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  PENNY  PRESS         205 

in  the  house  ;put  when  newspapers  sold  for  a  penny  a  copy,  they 
cpept  into  the  pockets  of  the  working-man  to  be  glanced  at  has- 
tily at  his  noonday  lunch  and  to  be  read  religiously  after  his 
evening  meal. I  Naturally,  politicians  bitterly  opposed  this  new 
press,  and  did  what  they  could  to  prevent  it  from  feeding  at  the 
political  crib  of  State  and  National  advertising.  Nevertheless, 
the  new  journalism,  opposed  to  politics  and  independent  in 
spirit,  continued  to  thrive.  It  was  said  that  in  ten  years  it  did 
more  good  by  exposure  of  municipal  scandals  than  the  older 
p/ess  had  done  in  twenty.  In  the  birth  of  the  penny  newspaper 
inay  be  found  the  beginning  of  the  independent  press  in  America.  / 
[/The  new  press  when  it  discussed  politics  did  so  without  taking 
orders  from  Washington:  it  ceased  to  be  a  minor  or  a  servant 
controlled  by  party  class  or  personal  clique. 


CHAPTER  XIII 
TRANSITION  PERIOD 
^  1832  —  1841 

THE  penny  press  brought  seyeral  chart  p^g  jp  f.frp  mn.-nnfQM-.nro 

and  niarketirg  ft*  npwgfp^g     Among  these  were  the  use^of 

steam  to  turn  the  press  and  the  employment  of  boys  to  sell  single 

copies  in  addition  to  distributing  papers  among  regular  sub- 

cribers.    The  greater  demand  for  larger  editions,  the  competi- 

ion  to  be  first  in  news,  the  better  facilities  for  gathering  items, 

he  deeper  interest  taken  in  civic  improvement,  the  changes  in 

he  body  politic,  the  expansion  of  the  country,  the  increase  of 

iteracy  among  all  classes  with  the  introduction  of  compulsory 

iducation  —  all    these  things  brought  readjustment    in  the 

printing  and  making  of  newspapers. 

These  changes  came  gradually,  however,  and  will  be  taken  up 
more  in  detail  as  they  appear.  They  were  concomitant  with 
other  transformations  of  American  civilization.  Manyrejorms 

+-k°  pfirpv  Press.  In  iNew  fork,  for 


example,  The  Sun  advocated  the  installation  of  a  paid  fire  de- 
partment. Under  the  volunteer  system  the  chief  aim  of  fire 
companies  was  to  be  first  at  the  burning  building  rather  than  to 
extinguish  the  flames.  One  company  never  hesitated  to  destroy 
the  apparatus  of  a  rival  if  thereby  it  could  be  first  at  the  fire. 
Rival  gangs  which  formerly  fought  on  city  streets  put  on  the 
red  shirts  of  volunteer  firemen  and  fought  their  battles  for  su- 
premacy as  before.  In  securing  the  introduction  of  horse-drawn 
engines  and  the  adoption  of  a  paid  department,  The  Sun  ren- 
dered a  most  distinct  service  to  the  city.  The  Herald  performed 
just  as  distinct  a  service  when  it  fought  for  the  adoption  of  uni- 
forms for  the  city  police.  Previously,  members  of  the  police  de- 
partment had  been  distinguished  from  civilians  only  by  the 
presence  of  a  badge  worn  on  the  coat.  In  case  of  trouble,  it  was 
not  uncommon  for  a  policeman  to  remove  his  badge  and  with 


TRANSITION  PERIOD  207 

the  insignia  in  his  pocket,  watch  the  fracas  as  a  spectator.  The 
reforms  in  the  police  department  brought  about  by  The  Herald 
added  much  to  the  respect  for  law  and  order  in  New  York.  Pos- 
sibly the  penny  press  of  Philadelphia  secured  even  greater 
reforms  for  that  city.  The  press  was  again  simply  a  mirror  of, 
the  transformations  of  overgrown  villages  into  metropolitan 

cities  and  of  isolated  states  ana  Territories  into  a  JNation. 

_  __ -^•..^•••^^^-^ ..^^^•^••"•••••••••B^* 

GREELEY,    SEWARD,    AND   WEED 

During  the  time  when  the  penny  press  was  being  established 
in  the  larger  cities,  Horacs.Iilfieley  was  interested  in  various 
newspaper  enterprises.  His  entrance,  jnjjfl  New-Yhrfr  City  in 
1831,  because  of  his  peculiarities  of  dress  and  mannerisms, 
might  be  paralleled  to  that  of  Benjamin  Franklin  into  Phila- 
delphia. From  his  savings  as  a  journeyman  printer,  Greeley, 
as  has  already  been  mentioned,  aided  in  the  Pufrlififlitir>T*-nf  what 
became  the  first  one-cent  newspaper  in  New  York,  TVieJlformtt*/ 
Post.  At  the"time  The  Sun  was  established  he  was  running  a  job 
Office"which  made  a  specialty  of  the  advertising  literature  of  lot- 
teries, etc.  In  conjunction  withjJonas  Winchester  he  started 
on  March  2^  18341  The  New  Yorker,  in  which  he  published  the 
larger  part  of  his  editorial  work:,  both  original  and  selected  writ- 
ings, though  he  continued  ***  wrjtp  fnr  T*ir  niri7y  TTftn  He  was 
a  member  of  the~political  company,  spoken  of  in  the  press  as 
Seward,  Weed,  and  Greeley.  This  company  proceeded,  after 
the  political  revolution  of  1837  to  start,  under  the  auspices  and 
by  the  direction  of  the  Whig  Central  Committee  of  the  State 
»f  New  York  on  March  3,  J.838.  a  campaign  paper  in  Albany 
called  The  Jeffersoniau.  Funds  for  its  establishment  were  con- 
tributed by  the  leading  Whig  politicians  in  amounts  of  ten  dol- 
lars each.  The  paper,  sold  at  fifty  cents  a  year,  was  according 
to  Greeley  established  "on  the  impulse  of  the  Whig  tornado  to 
secure  a  like  result  in  1838  so  as  to  give  the  Whig  party  a  Gov- 
ernor, Lieutenant-Governor,  Senate,  Assembly,  United  States 
Senator,  Congressman,  and  all  the  vast  executive  patronage  of 
•the  State,"  then  amounting  to  millions  of  dollars.  For  his  ser- 
vices, Greeley  received  a  remuneration  of  one  thousand  dollars, 
but  he  naturally  expected  to  get  some  of  those  offices  worth  from 


208       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

three  to  twenty  thousand  dollars  per  year  which  Seward  upon 
being  elected  Governor  was  handing  out  to  his  friends.  In  this  he 
was  disappointed:  to  quote  his  words,  "I  return  to  my  garret 
and  my  crust." 

In  the  Tippecanoe  and  Tyler  campaign  of  1840 — known  as  the 
"Tip  and  Ty"  campaign  in  the  press  —  the  same  political  firm 
brought  out  another  campaign  paper  on  May  2,  1840,  entitled 
The  Log  Cabin  published  simultaneously  at  New  York  and 
Albany.  Of  This  sheet  Henry  Jarvis  Raymond,  when  editor  of 
The  New  York  Times,  once  said,  "  It  was  the  best  campaign  paper 
ever  published."  It  was  designed  only  for  a  campaign  sheet  and 
was  expected  to  expire  with  the  twenty-seventh  number :  forty- 
eight  thousand  of  the  first  issue  were  sold  and  subscriptions  came 
in  at  the  rate  of  seven  hundred  a  day.  The  Log  Cabin,  both  by 
its  caricatures  and  by  its  editorials,  promoted  the  raising  of  log 
cabins,  formally  dedicated  with  plenty  of  hard  cider,  as  political 
centers  and  headquarters  for  Harrison  and  Tyler  men. 

The  Whig  tornado,  mentioned  by  Greeley,  started  with  Jack- 
son's decision  to  remove  the  deposits  of  the  Government  from 
the  Bank  of  the  United  States.  Financial  interests  subsidized 
existing  Whig  organs  and  started  new  ones  at  strategic  points. 
Democratic  papers,  alienated  by  Jackson,  continued  their  op- 
position to  his  successor,  Martin  Van  Buren.  A  group  of  papers, 
headed  by  The  Enquirer  of  Richmond,  was  especially  bitter 
toward  Van  Buren  for  not  favoring  the  annexation  of  Texas  and 
became  even  more  violent  in  its  denunciation  when  he  accepted 
a  nomination  of  a  rival  political  organization.  The  sound  money 
doctrines  of  Van  Buren  made  the  Whig  campaign  organs  popu- 
lar with  the  masses  which  wanted  "  higher  wages  and  lower 
prices"  so  readily  promised  by  these  sheets  in  case  of  victory 
at  the  polls.  Log  cabins  were  frequently  erected  to  be  used 
as  print-shops  and  the  office  mascot  was  invariably  a  live 
raccoon  chained  to  the  front  doorpost  or  to  the  rude  chimney 
of  the  structure.  The  popularity  of  the  log  cabin  was  due  to  the 
fact  that  Harrison  was  not  only  born  in  one,  but  also  had  one 
attached  his  house.  Rival  campaign  weeklies  existed  for  the 
Democratic  Party  with  names  as  peculiarly  appropriate  as 
The  Log  Cabin.  Two  favorites  were  The  Coon  Skinner  and  The 


TRANSITION  PERIOD  209 

Dry  Cider  Barrett.  Of  the  Whig  sheets,  next  to  Greeley's  Log 
Cabin,  came  The  Corn-Stalk  Fiddle  and  The  Whig  Rifle^E&uu* 
again  djfHJif;  fiijrnpniffn  witf.Ulim.  or  dailies  for  that  matter,  play 
SO  important  a  part,  in  prffijffent.ml  pjfifif.irmg  as  in  the  "Tip  and 

Ty"    ^rv.pQipri^f   1&J/^        \L 

GREELEY   AND   HIS   DAILY 

After  Harrison  had  been  elected,  largely  through  the  Whig 
Campaign  organs  of  which  The  Log  Cabin  was  the  leader, 
Greeley  naturally  thought  that  Governor  Seward  would  ask 
that  the  position  of  postmaster  of  New  York  be  given  to  the 
editor  of  The  Log  Cabin,  but  he  was  unable  not  only  to  get  this 
position,  but  also  to  get  anything  "in  the  scramble  of  the  swell 
mob  of  coon-minstrels  and  cider-suckers  which  swarmed  to 
Washington  for  offices."  Of  the  residents  from  New  York, 
City  "no  one  in  the  crowd,"  to  quote  Greeley 's  own  words  in 
a  letter  to  Seward,  had  done  so  much  "toward  General  Harri- 
son's nomination  and  election,"  as  the  editor  of  The  Log  Cabin. 
Unable  to  get  political  office  Greeley  started  The£rjfcwe  in  New 
York  on  April  10,  1841,  on  the  very  day  of 'Harrison's  funeral. 
The  aim  of  this  newspaper,  published  at  one  cent,  was  that  it 
should  be  "removed  alike  from  servile  partisanship  on  the  one 
hand  and  from  gagged,  mincing  neutrality  on  the  other." 
Though  there  were  already  numerous  daily  papers  in  New 
York  there  was  still  room  for  another  local  Whig  paper.  The 
Courier  and  Enquirer,  The  New  York  American,  The  Express, 
and  The  Commercial  Advertiser  were  Whig  papers,  but  circu- 
lated at  the  annual  subscription  price  of  ten  dollars  a  year :  The 
Evening  Post  of  the  same  price  leaned  to  the  Democratic  side  of 
politics;  The  Journal  of  Commerce,  while  primarily  a  commer- 
cial daily  favored  entries  approved  by  the  Democrats.  The 
Signal,  The  Tattler,  and  The  Star  were  among  the  cheap  papers 
which  sat  astride  the  political  fence;  The  Sun  had  now  achieved 
an  enormous  circulation,  and  while  professing  neutrality  in  poli- 
tics always  shone  a  little  brighter  for  the  Democrats;  The  Herald 
was  still  independent  and  had  raised  its  price  to  two  cents. 

In  his  preliminary  notice  of  publication,  Greeley  thus  out- 
lined the  policy  to  be  pursued  by  The  Tribune :  — 


210       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

On  Saturday,  the  tenth  day  of  April  instant,  the  subscriber  will 
publish  the  first  number  of  a  new  morning  journal  of  politics,  literature 
and  general  intelligence.  The  Tribune,  as  its  name  imports,  will  labor 
to  advance  the  interests  of  the  people,  and  to  promote  their  moral,  social 
and  political  wellbeing.  The  immoral  and  degrading  police  reports,  ad- 
vertisements and  other  matter  which  have  been  allowed  to  disgrace  the 
columns  of  our  leading  penny  papers  will  be  carefully  excluded  from 
this,  and  no  exertion  spared  to  render  it  worthy  of  the  hearty  approval 
of  the  virtuous  and  refined,  and  a  welcome  visitant  at  the  family  fire- 
side. Earnestly  believing  that  the  political  revolution  which  has  called 
William  Henry  Harrison  to  the  Chief  Magistracy  of  the  nation  was  a 
triumph  of  right  reason  and  public  good  over  error  and  sinister  am- 
bition, The  Tribune  will  give  to  the  new  administration  a  frank  and  can- 
did, but  manly  and  independent,  support,  judging  it  always  by  its 
acts,  and  commending  these  only  so  far  as  they  shall  seem  calculated 
to  subserve  the  great  end  of  all  government  —  the  welfare  of  the  people. 

The  success  of  The  Tribune  was  immediate.  The  editor's  per- 
sonal and  political  friends  had  secured  subscribers  by  the  hun- 
dreds before  the  first  issue  of  five  thousand  copies  was  printed. 
Though  started  as  a  penny  paper,  The  Tribune  began  its  second 
volume  on  April  11,  l&ljj^at  the  increased  price  of  nine  cents  a 
week,  or  two  cents  a  copy.  The  New  Yorker  and  The  Log  Cabin 
Greeley  merged  into  The  Weekly  Tribune.  The  Tribune  under 
Greeley's  editorship  has  been  commonly  classed  as  a  party  organ, 
but  he  was  fairly  successful  in  his  determination  to  "  remove  it 
from  servile  partisanship  on  the  one  hand  and  from  gagged, 
mincing  neutrality  on  the  other";  no  better  illustration  of  this 
fact  is  found  than  his  own  words,  "The  Tribune  will  accept  the 
party  nominee  but  will  spit  upon  the  platform."  Though  The 
Tribune  continued  to  be  a  pulpit  from  which  Greeley  preached 

JJaily  the  partisan  gospel,  according  to  St.  Horace,  it  was  also  a 
latform  for  the  early  appearance  of  such  distinguished  jour- 
alists  and  publicists  as  Charles  Anderson  Dana,  Henry  Jarvis 
Avaymond,  George  William  Curtis,  Carl  Schurz,  John  Hay, 
Whitelaw  Reid,  Henry  James,  William  Dean  Ho  wells,  Bayard 
Taylor,  George  Ripley,  Margaret  Fuller,   Edmund  Clarence 
Stedman,  Richard  Grant  White,  Richard  Hildreth,  John  Russell 
Young,  Sidney  Howard  Gay,  etcl 


TRANSITION  PERIOD  211 

NEWSPAPER  BATTLES 

In  the  competition  to  be  first  on  the  streets  with  important 
news,  papers  spared  neither  labor  nor  expense  —  to  use  a  hack- 
neyed expression.  In  an  age  when  politics  attracted  so  much 
attention  in  the  press  it  was  natural  that  there  should  be  the 
keenest  rivalry  in  reporting  political  speeches.  As  these  were 
often  delivered  at  some  distance  from  the  place  of  publication, 
papers  adopted  various  methods  to  rush  the  reports.  If  news 
had  to  come  by  boat,  compositors  and  type  cases  were  put  on 
board,  and  as  fast  as  copy  was  written  on  the  trip  it  was  put  into 
type  and  made  ready  for  the  press.  On  the  other  hand,  if  news 
had  to  come  by  rail,  a  reporter,  acting  under  instructions  from 
his  paper,  hired  a  locomotive  for  his  exclusive  use  and  made  a 
fast  run  with  only  the  engineer  as  a  companion.  Such  methods 
for  the  transmission  of  news  were  common  until  the  telegraph 
proved  quicker. 

Such  enterprises  did  much  to  develop  the  instinct  for  news, 
for  speed  soon  became  the  distinguishing  characteristic  of  Amer- 
ican journalism.  Boats  on  the  Hudson  river  often  carried  a  corps 
of  compositors  who  could  put  into  type  a  speech  delivered  at 
Albany  and  have  it  ready  to  lock  up  in  a  form  by  the  time  the 
boat  docked  in  New  York.  One  of  the  most  remarkable  beats  in 
this  connection  was  the  report  of  a  speech  delivered  by  Daniel 
Webster  in  Boston.  Several  New  York  newspapers  sent  shorthand 
reporters  who  took  down  the  remarks  of  Webster,  as  the  address 
was  an  important  one.  Representing  The  Tribune  was  Henry  J. 
Raymond,  who,  inexperienced  in  stenography,  was  somewhat 
handicapped,  but  he  had  provided  for  the  emergency  by  taking 
with  him  a  number  of  Tribune  compositors.  The  latter,  with  the 
help  of  a  miniature  printing-plant  which  had  been  put  on  board 
the  night  boat  out  of  Boston,  were  prepared  to  set  the  speech  in 
type  as  fast  as  Raymond  could  write  it.  Employers  of  The 
Tribune  met  the  boat  when  it  landed  at  five  the  next  morning  and 
in  one  hour  carriers  were  distributing  copies  of  The  Tribune 
which  contained  a  full  report  of  Webster's  speech  delivered  in 
Boston  the  preceding  afternoon.  Greeley's  paper  that  morning 
was  the  talk  of  the  town,  and  his  rivals  on  that  occasion  were 
simply  "also  rans." 


212       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

STEAM  EXPRESSES   OF   "  THE   SUN" 

In  running  steam  expresses  to  obtain  early  news  possibly  The 
New  York  Suun  stood  first.  Its  publisher  once  asserted  that  the 
secret  of  its  success  was  mainly  due  to  its  enterprise  in  this  direc- 
tion. From  1842  to  1847  it  spent  over  twenty  thousand  dollars  in 
running  such  expresses  —  a  large  sum  for  the  time  when  finan- 
cial returns  from  advertising  were  not  large.  In  justice  to  other 
Gotham  papers  it  must  be  said  that  The  Sun  was  not  infre- 
quently eclipsed  in  this  field  by  The  Herald  or  by  The  Tribune. 
A  whole  chapter  could  be  devoted  to  interesting  accounts  of  races 
between  newspaper  expresses.  On  one  occasion  to  get  the  Euro- 
pean news  which  was  coming  by  way  of  Boston  both  The  Sun 
and  The  Herald  had  a  locomotive,  but  on  rival  tracks.  The 
reporter  of  The  Sun  was  the  first  to  leave  Boston,  but  he  was  no 
sooner  out  of  sight  than  the  reporter  of  The  Herald  sent  his  loco- 
motive to  the  round-house  and  got  out  a  special  edition  of 
The  Herald  in  Boston  on  the  press  of  The  Mail.  This  special 
edition  of  The  Herald,  sent  by  train  to  New  York,  was  the  first 
to  give  the  news,  for  The  Sun,  thinking  that  the  express  of  The 
Herald  had  been  wrecked  when  it  did  not  arrive,  had  not  rushed 
the  news  into  type  as  rapidly  as  usual.  .  On  another  occasion 
a  representative  of  The  Tribune,  in  order  to  have  the  exclusive 
use  of  an  important  item  of  news,  deliberately  stole  an  engine 
especially  chartered  by  The  Herald  and  then  ran  away  with  it 
to  New  York.  In  those  days  newspapers  did  not  bother  their 
heads  with  the  nice  questions  of  newspaper  ethics :  it  was  simply 
a  fight  to  get  the  news  and  to  get  it  first  in  print. 

EDITORIAL   COMBATS 

During  the  days  of  personal  journalism  a  large  amount  of 
editorial  space  was  frequently  given  to  abuse  of  rival  editors. 
Some  of  these  tilts  between  editors,  though  often  unmannerly, 
were  very  interesting. 

James  Watson  Webb,  of  The  Courier  anA  "Rn.qmi.rer.  once  took 
revenge  upon  Horace  Greeley,of  The  Tribune,  by  attacking  what 
he  thought  were  some  of  the  eccentricities  of  the  latter.  Greeley 
came  back  with  the  rejoinder  in  The  Tribune  which  completely 


TRANSITION  PERIOD  213 

squelched  Webb  —  at  least  for  the  time  being.  Webb  on  Jan- 
uary 27,  1844,  published  the  following  editorial  in  The  Courier 
and  Enquirer:  — 

The  editor  of  The  Tribune  would  have  all  the  world  live  upon  bran- 
bread  and  sawdust.  He  seeks  for  notoriety  by  pretending  to  great  ec- 
centricity of  character  and  habits,  and  by  the  strangeness  of  his  theories 
and  practices;  we,  on  the  contrary,  are  content  with  following  the 
beaten  path,  and  accomplishing  the  good  we  can,  in  the  old-fashioned 
way.  He  lays  claim  to  greatness  by  wandering  through  the  streets  with 
a  hat  double  the  size  of  his  head,  a  coat  after  the  fashion  of  Jacob's  of 
old,  with  one  leg  of  his  pantaloons  inside  and  the  other  outside  of  his 
boot,  and  with  boots  all  bespattered  with  mud,  or  possibly,  a  shoe  on 
one  foot  and  boot  on  the  other,  and  glorying  in  an  unwashed  and  un- 
shaven person.  We,  on  the  contrary,  eschew  all  such  affectation  as 
weak  and  silly;  we  think  there  is  a  difference  between  notoriety  and 
distinction;  we  recognize  the  social  obligation  to  act  and  dress  ac- 
cording to  our  station  in  life;  and  we  look  upon  cleanliness  of  person 
as  inseparable  from  purity  of  thought  and  benevolence  of  heart.  In 
short,  there  is  not  the  slightest  resemblance  between  the  editor  of  The 
Tribune  and  ourself,  politically,  morally,  or  socially;  and  it  is  only 
when  his  affectation  and  impudence  are  unbearable,  that  we  condescend 
to  notice  him  or  his  press. 

Greeley,  equal  to  the  occasion,  on  the  next  day  printed  the 
following  reply  in  The  Tribune:  — 

It  is  true  that  the  Editor  of  The  Tribune  chooses  mainly  (not  entirely) 
vegetable  food;  but  he  never  troubles  his  readers  on  the  subject;  it  does 
not  worry  them;  why  should  it  concern  the  Colonel?  It  is  hard  for  phi- 
losophy that  so  humble  a  man  shall  be  made  to  stand  as  its  exemplar, 
while  Christianity  is  personified  by  the  hero  of  the  Sunday  duel  with 
Hon.  Tom  Marshall;  but  such  luck  will  happen.  As  to  our  personal 
appearance,  it  does  seem  time  that  we  should  say  something.  Some 
donkey,  a  while  ago,  apparently  anxious  to  assail  or  annoy  the  Editor 
of  this  paper,  and  not  well  knowing  with  what,  originated  the  story  of 
his  carelessness  of  personal  appearance;  and  since  then,  every  block- 
head of  the  same  disposition,  and  distressed  by  a  similar  lack  of  ideas, 
has  repeated  and  exaggerated  the  foolery,  until,  from  its  origin  in  The 
Albany  Microscope,  it  has  sunk  down  at  last  to  the  columns  of  The 
Courier  and  Enquirer,  growing  more  absurd  at  every  landing.  Yet,  all 
this  time,  the  object  of  this  silly  raillery  has  doubtless  worn  better  clothes 
than  two-thirds  of  those  who  thus  assailed  him,  —  better  than  any  of 
them  could  honestly  wear  if  they  paid  their  debts  otherwise  than  by 
bankruptcy;  while,  if  they  are  indeed  more  cleanly  than  he,  they  must 


214       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

bathe  very  thoroughly  not  less  than  twice  every  day.  The  Editor  of 
The  Tribune  is  the  son  of  a  poor  and  humble  farmer;  came  to  New  York 
a  minor,  without  a  friend  within  two  hundred  miles,  less  than  ten  dol- 
lars in  his  pocket,  and  precious  little  besides;  he  has  never  had  a  dollar 
from  a  relative,  and  has,  for  years,  labored  under  a  load  of  debt.  Hence- 
forth he  may  be  able  to  make  a  better  show,  if  deemed  essential  by 
his  friends ;  for  himself  he  has  not  much  time  or  thought  to  bestow  on  the 
matter.  That  he  ever  affected  eccentricity  is  most  untrue;  and  cer- 
tainly no  costume  he  ever  appeared  in,  would  create  such  a  sensation 
in  Broadway,  as  that  James  Watson  Webb  would  have  worn,  but  for  the 
clemency  of  Gov.  Seward.  Heaven  grant  our  assailant  may  never  hang 
with  such  weight  on  another  Whig  executive!  —  We  drop  him. 

In  order  to  understand  the  latter  part  of  Greeley's  comment 
about  Webb,  some  mention  should  be  made  of  the  latter's  will- 
ingness to  defend  his  opinions,  not  only  in  the  columns  of  his 
paper,  but  also  on  the  "  field  of  honor."  One  such  duel  had  in- 
volved Webb  in  legal  difficulties  and  he  had  only  escaped  a  jail 
sentence  through  the  courtesy  of  Governor  Seward. 

For  the  sake  of  the  contrast  of  juxtaposition,  an  editorial 
tilt  of  a  later  period,  when  journalism  had  become  impersonal, 
may  be  inserted.  As  The  Tribune  had  the  better  of  it  in  the  edi- 
torial controversy  just  recorded,  an  illustration  may  be  used 
which  reverses  the  honors  l^ong  after  The  Courier  and  Enquirer 
had  become  a  part  of  The  World,  a  Democratic  President  made 
a  very  poor  appointment  to  an  office  at  his  disposal.  The  Tribune, 
thinking  that  it  might  embarrass  its  neighbor,  asserted  that  it 
would  leave  the  explanation  of  this  appointment  to  the  official 
Democratic  spokesman,  The  World.  The  antiphonal  rejoinder 
of  The  World,  after  reprinting  the  comment,  was,  "It  would  be 
a  great  deal  better  for  the  readers  of  The  Tribune  if  that  news- 
paper left  all  matters  to  The  World  to  explain."  Nothing  shows 
more  the  tremendous  advance  which  American  journalism  has 

made  than  the  two  editorial  controversies  just  given. 

/ 

FIRST  NEWSPAPER   CORPORATION 

William  Leggett,  in  summing  up  the  newspaper  press  of 
1835,  made  a  special  plea  for  the  corporational  newspaper  —  a 
prophecy  of  what  the  coming  newspaper  in  America  was  to  be. 
Mr.  Leggett  thought  that  newspapers  thus  established  would 


TRANSITION  PERIOD  215 

then  be  able  to  stand  "the  assaults  of  prejudice,  now  fatal  in 
the  unassisted  hands  of  single  and  comparatively  indigent  in- 
dividuals." He  pointed  out  that  in  England  the  principal  news- 
papers were  joint-stock  property,  many  having  hundreds  and 
some  thousands  of  owners  whose  interests  are  attended  to  by 
a  committee  of  directors  of  their  own  selection.  By  way  of  con- 
trast, Mr.  Leggett  added:  — 

Among  us,  the  newspapers  are  the  property  of  single  individuals; 
and  it  is  found  that  administering  to  the  depraved  tastes  and  appe- 
tites of  the  community,  consulting  the  passions  and  caprice  of  the  hour, 
and  guiding  their  course  by  the  variable  breath  of  the  multitude,  is  a 
more  profitable,  as  well  as  an  easier  task,  than  steering  undeviatingly 
by  fixed  principles,  referring  all  subjects  to  the  touchstone  of  truth, 
and  addressing  themselves  with  inflexible  constancy  to  the  judgments 
of  men.  It  is  not  to  be  wondered  at,  however  much  it  is  to  be  deplored, 
that  they  adopt  the  readiest  and  most  lucrative  mode  of  discharging 
their  functions,  and  forego  the  glorious  opportunity  their  vocation  af- 
fords, of  effectually  advancing  the  great  interests  of  mankind. 

The  firsjrpaper  to  be  thus  published  by  a  stock  company  was 
The  NewYork  Tribune.  On  January  1,  184SL  a  meeting  was 
called  foFthe  purpose  of  distributing  the  stock  .among  its  em- 
ployees.^ Every  one  was  placed  on  a  salary  from  editor-in-chief 
"Hown  to  printer's  devil.  This  system  of  flssnf»ifl.t.inn  ownership 
was  especially  pleasing  to  Greeley  because  of  itsjsocialistic  aspect. 


PRESS   MODESTY   OF   POLITICIANS 

During  the  first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century,  even  the 
ablest  statesmen  delivered  their  speeches  primarily  for  home 
consumption.  They  did  not  care  to  have  their  utterances  given 
widespread  publication.  They  were  to  be  reported  in  the 
friendly  organs  of  the  political  parties.  Henry  Clay,  for  example, 
when  he  was  about  to  make  a  speech  at  Lexington,  Kentucky, 
was  told  that  a  reporter  of  the  Associated  Press  was  present. 
The  great  Kentucky  statesman  then  promptly  refused  to  go 
on  with  his  address  until  the  reporter  had  folded  up  his  paper 
and  left  the  grounds.  Clay  was  deeply  insulted  —  and  did  not 
hesitate  to  say  so  in  picturesque  language  —  that  a  writer  for 
newspapers  unknown  to  him  should  have  the  audacity  to  report 


216       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

his  speech  without  first  securing  special  permission  to  do  so.  The 
reporter,  fortunately,  was  Richard  Smith,  who  later  became 
associated  with  The  Commercial  Gazette  of  Cincinnati.  Being 
a  good  newspaper  man,  he  hung  around  until  the  speech  was  over, 
and  then  obtained  an  excellent  resume*  of  the  address  from  a 
friend  who  knew  the  politics  of  the  State  and  who  remembered 
the  salient  points  of  the  speech.  Until  the  politi^'qr>  i^n^H  that 
he  must  speak  to  a  larger  audience  than  that  around  the  stump, 
he  reporter  was  regarded  as  an  impertinent  intruj 


\* 

lh 


JOURNALISM   IN    THE   REPUBLIC   OF   TEXAS 

When  Texas,  being  dissatisfied  with  Mexican  rule,  revolted 


in  1835,  its  most  important  newspaper  became 
and  Texasjtegister  which  first  appeared  at  San  Felice^  October 
10,  1835,  published  by  Gail  Borden,  Joseph  Baker,  and  Thomas 
H.  Borden.  It  was  not  only  one  of  the  foremost  papers  devoted 
to  the  revolutionary  cause,  but  also  practically  the  official 
organ  of  the  Provincial  Government  :  it  continued  to  be  published 
at  Austin  until  March  24,  1836,  when  General  Santa  Anna 
sent  forward  an  advance  guard  which  forced  the  staff  to  take  the 
press  apart,  break  up  the  forms,  pack  the  type,  etc.,  and  to  flee 
to  Harrisbujgb,  where  another  attempt  was  made  to  print  an- 
other edition  of  The  Telegraph.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  one  issue 
was  put  into  type  and  six  sheets  had  been  actually  taken  off  the 
press  when  another  advance  guard  from  Santa  Anna  entered 
the  place,  seized  the  press,  pied  the  type,  and  held  the  printers  as 
prisoners.  Later,  the  troops  from  Santa  Anna  threw  the  press 
and  type  into  the  Buffalo  Bayou,  from  which  they  were  later 
taken,  cleaned,  and  used  in  Houston  to  print  Th^Morjy&p  Star, 
which  first  appeared  on  April  8,  1839,  and  boasted  of  being  the 
first  daily  paper  in  the  Republic  of  Texas. 

After  the  battle  of  San  Jacinto,  Gail  Borden  went  to  Cincin- 
nati, where  he  bought  another  printing  outfit  which  he  used  in 
resuming  publication  of  The  Telegraph  on  October  2,  1S26, 
at  Columbia  on  the  Brazos,  "then  the  temporary  seat  of  the 
Government.  On  April  11,  JJ&7,  The  Telegraph  was  moved  to 
Houston,  at  that  time  the  seatTof  the  Government,  where  Dr. 
Francis  Moore  became  its  editor.  On  June  20,  1837,  Gail  Borden 


TRANSITION  PERIOD  217 

sold  his  interest  to  Jacob  W.  Cruger  and  the  publishers  now 
became  Cruger  and  Moore:  they  were  also  Public  Printers  and 
continued  to  hold  that  office  even  after  the  Capital  had  been 
removed  to  Austin.  At  the  latter  place  they  established,  on 
January  ISQfttoT  Th*  T^m  fifm/****,  but  continued  The  Tele- 
graph &t  Houston.  Gail  Borden,  after  selling  his  interest  in  the 
paper,  eventually  returned  to  his  native  State  and  founded  in 
New  York  City  the  great  milk  company  which  bears  his  name. 
Of  the  journalism  conditions  in  Texas  while  a  Republic  the 
following  resume*  has  been  left  by  "an  emigrant,  late  from  the 
United  States":  "That  the  Texians  are  a  reading  people  is 
manifested  by  the  fact  that  there  are  now  twelve  newspapers 
published  in  the  Republic.  One  of  these  is  a  daily  paper  pub- 
lished at  Houston,  and  one  or  two  others  are,  during  the  sessions 
of  Congress,  semi-weekly  ones.  In  a  population  so  small,  and 
with  such  imperfect  post  routes,  to  sustain  so  many  papers  must 
be  admitted  to  be  an  astonishing  circumstance." 

''  TOPLIFF'S  " NEWS-ROOM" 

Possibly  Samuel  Topliff  made  the  first  attempt  to  gather 
news  to  be  retailed  ajnong  several  newspapers.  Establishing 
his  headquarters  in  a  "news-room77  in  the  Coffee  Exchange  in 
Rnpt.nn  he  made  a  specialty  of  the  reports  of  the  markeTand 
the  commercial  news  of  Boston  Harbor.  He  kept  a  logbool$:  in 
which  cajjtajpfii  of  boats  which  had  just  arrived  wrote  the  news 
they  had  picked  up  at  foreign  ports.  This  logbook  was  available 
to  the  Boston  newspapers  —  for  a  consideration.  Mention  has 
already  been  made  of  how  The  Boston  Transcript  availed  itself 
of  such  an  opportunity  when  it  brought  out  its  first  issue  in 
1830. 

PRESS  PIGEONS   OF  CRAIG 

While  Topliff  was  busy  in  Boston,  Arunah  S.  Abel],  of  Th^ 
Baltimore  Sun,  and  D.  H.  Craig  were  busy  experimenting  the 
possibility  of  using  pigeons  to  carry  news.  Headquarters  were 
established  in  Baltimore  and  here  the  pigeons  were  trained:  at 
one  time  over  four  hundred  were  kept  in  a  house  on  Ham- 
stead  Hill  near  the  Maryland  Hospital  for  the  Insane.  The 


218       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

pigeon  express  first  ran  —  or  rather  flew  —  from  Washington 
to  Baltimore:  later,  Washington  dispatches  were  carried  by 
pigeon  relays  to  Baltimore,  Philadelphia,  and  New  York.  The 
headquarters  at  the  last  place  was  a  coop  on  top  of  The  Herald 
building.  Incidentally,  it  may  be  remarked  that  it  was  not  until 
the  beginning  of  the  twentieth  century  that  The  Herald  did 
away  entirely  with  its  carrier  pigeons:  until  fifteen  years  ago 
that  newspaper  had  one  of  the  best  cages  of  these  remarkable 
birds  for  exigencies. 

D.  H.  Craig  also  experimented  in  Boston  with  pigeons  as 
carriers  of  news.  Securing  a  number  of  African  carrier  pigeons, 
he  kept  them  in  a  special  building  near  his  house  in  Roxbury 
until  they  had  become  thoroughly  domesticated.  Upon  the  ex- 
pected arrival  of  an  English  mail  steamer  in  Halifax  he,  with 
his  winged  carriers,  would  go  there,  get  the  latest  British  papers, 
and  then  take  passage  to  Boston.  Wliile  at  sea  he  would  write 
on  thin  manifold  paper  a  summary  of  the  most  important  Eu- 
ropean news.  Then  when  the  steamer  was  about  fifty  miles  from 
Boston  he  would  liberate  his  pigeons  with  the  news  fastened  to 
wing  or  foot.  They  would  reach  home  several  hours  before  the 
steamer  docked  and  the  news  they  carried  would,  after  being 
promptly  put  into  type,  be  published  as  an  extra  of  The  Boston 
Daily  Mail.  When  the  edition  had  been  run  off,  the  title  of  The 
Daily  Mail  was  removed  and  that  of  The  New  York  Herald 
Extra  was  substituted  and  the  press  again  started.  The  second 
edition,  after  being  promptly  forwarded  to  New  York  by  Sound 
steamers,  was  put  into  the  hands  of  newsboys  by  James  Gordon 
Bennett,  proprietor  of  The  New  York  Herald.  Because  of  the  in- 
tense rivalry  between  The  Herald  and  The  Sun,  Bennett  at  one 
time  offered  five  hundred  dollars  an  hour  for  every  hour  that 
Craig  could  furnish  The  Herald  with  news  ahead  of  rivals.  So 
bitter  became  this  fight  for  the  honor  of  being  first  in  the  news 
that  questionable  methods  of  interference  were  often  adopted: 
even  the  pigeons  which  carried  the  news  were  shot  by  men  hired 
by  newspapers  outside  the  service  of  the  winged  carriers. 
Craig  later  became  connected  with  the  Associated  Press  of 
New  York. 


TRANSITION  PERIOD  219 

HALE   AND  HALLECK 

In  New  York  the  first^  pretentious  step  to  gather  news  while 
it  was  news  was  made  by  ^rtjmr  Tappan^wno  nad  founded 
Tfie^Tournal  of  ConwnwrA-**  a  semi-religious  newspaper  to  com- 
bat the  growing  evil  influences  of  the  theater.  To  get  the  Euro- 
pean news  he  used  to  meet  the  incoming  vessels  with  a  rowboat 
and  thus  save  time  in  getting  the  news  into  print.  Later,  he  sold 
his  paper  to  the  Boston  newspaper  men,  David  Tfole  and  Gerard 
Halleck.  These  men,  familiar  with  the  news  enterprise  of 
Samuel  Topliff,  built  a  fast  news-yacht  which  they  called  "The 
Journal  of  Commerce"  after  their  newspaper.  The  uouner" 
andEnquirer.  notTo"be  outdone,  promptly  put  into  commission 
Another  news-boat,  "The  Thomas  H.  Smith.^The  Journal  of 
Commerce,  true  to  the  principles  01  its  founder,  refused  to  collect 
the  news  on  the  Sabbath  and  appealed  to  the  more  provincial 
subscriber  to  excuse  lack  of  news  on  Monday.  The  Journal  of 
Commerce  also  built  a  semaphore  telegraph  at  Sandy  Hook  by 
means  of  which  it  relayed  news  from  its  news-boat  to  Staten 
Island  where  items  were  promptly  taken  to  its  New  York  office. 
In  this  way  the  paper  was  able  to  be  first  in  maritime  news  for 
some  little  time.  Whenever  important  items  arrived  it  got  out 
extra  editions  in  order  that  it  might  be  first  on  the  streets. 

»  Aroused  by  the  enterprise  of  the  penny  press,  the  conservative 
blanket  sheets  —  called  "our  bed-quilt  contemporaries"  by  the 
penny  papers  —  were  not  always  beaten  in  the  publishing  of 
notable  news. 

PRIMITIVE   PONY   EXPRESS 

While  other  papers  shared  in  the  honor  of  its  development,  the 
pony^^exjiEfiss- was  really  started  by  The  Sun,  of  Baltimore, 
Maryland.^  Local  newspapers  had  supplied  their  customers 
with  the  President's  messages  as  follows:  they  purchased  sup- 
plements previously  printed  in  Washington,  but  bearing  the  title 
of  their  papers,  and  then  distributed  them  upon  their  arrival 
to  their  readers.  In  December,  1838,  however,  The  Sun  hired 
a  representative  to  bring,  with  the  help  of  "a  Canadian  pony  as 
nimble  as  a  goat  and  as  swift  as  the  wind,"  a  copy  of  the  message 


220       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

to  The  Sun  office  on  Light  Street.  Within  five  minutes  after  its 
arrival  forty-nine  compositors  were  hastily  putting  it  into  type 
and  in  two  hours  this  newspaper  had  the  message  on  the  streets 
of  the  city.  This  was  the  beginning  of  the  famous  pony  express 
of  The  Sun. 

From  that  time  forward,  until  the  invention  of  the  telegraph, 
the  pony  express  Way  liye'fl  to  bring  the  messages  of  the  Presi- 
dents to  Ballinlore;  from  this  point  they  were  relayed  by  fresh 
expresses  to  New  York  and  other  cities.  Through  the  help  of 
its  horses  The  Sun  was  enabled  to  give  its  readers  President 
Harrison's  Inaugural  Address  on  the  same  day  that  it  was  de- 
livered. But  it  was  in  the  war  with  Mexico  thatjthe  pony  express 
reached  its  highest.  deye,lpr.mpTiT  -"" 

FIRST  FLIGHT  OF   " BROOKLYN   EAGLE" 

When  Harrison  was  elected  President,  politicians  of  the  rival 
party  at  once  began  to  make  preparations  for  the  defeat  of  the 
Whig  Party  at  the  next  presidential  election.  Many  papers 
were  established  for  the  sake  of  influencing  votes.  Among  those 
thus  frmnfted  for  p.o)Hi|  ill  nniiiT'i  was  The  Eagle,  of  Brooklyn, 
New  York.  For  some  years  previous  to  1841  the  county  in 
which  Brooklyn  is  located  had  been  Whig:  the  Democrats  sought 
an  excuse  for  being  in  the  minority  by  asserting  that  they  had 
no  party  organ  to  represent  them.  A  few  of  the  leaders,  there- 
fore, in  the  hopes  of  wresting  control  of  the  county  from  the 
Whigs,  formed  a  company  to  start  a  new  daily  newspaper :  the  re- 
sult of  their  efforts  was  the  establishment  of  The  Brooklyn 
Eagle  and  The  Kings  County  Democrat  on  October  26,  Ift41.  with 
Isaac  Van  Anden  as  its  first  editor  and  publisher.  After  the 
county  had  been  swung  into  the  Democratic  ranks,  most  of  the 
men  who  had  started  The  Eagle  thought  that,  as  the  object  for 
which  the  journal  had  been  founded  had  been  obtained,  the 
paper  might  be  well  discontinued.  Mr.  Van  Anden,  however, 
thought  otherwise,  and  as  a  protest  against  discontinuing  the 
sheet  he  offered  to  purchase  the  interest  of  the  others  in  the 
paper.  In  this  way  he  became  its  sole  owner  and  conductor. 
Though  founded  as  a  party  organ,  The  Eagle  both  in  national 
and  local  campaigns  has  supported  in  its  editorial  columns  both 


TRANSITION  PERIOD  221 

Republican  and  Democratic  candidates  when  these  candidates 
stood  for  a  policy  that  best  represented  the  interests  of  the 
people.  As  Brooklyn  grew,  The  Eagle  shared  in  its  prosperity: 
it  has  carried  an  amount  of  advertising  which  has  been  ex- 
ceeded by  only  two  other  newspapers  in  the  City  of  New  York. 
Among  its  distinguished  editors  has  been  the  poet,  Walt  Whit- 
man, and  the  late  St.  Clair  McKelway.  In  spite  of  the  competi- 
tion of  the  penny  papers  of  New  York,  The  Eagle  succeeded  in 
keeping  the  home  field  to  itself,  even  though  it  charged  three 
cents  per  copy. 

COOPER'S  WHOLESALE  LIBELS 

The  only  man  who  has  ever  sued  the  newspapers  for  libel  on 
a  wholesale  scale  was  the  distinguished  American  novelist  — 
James  Fenimore  Cooper.  Returning  from  a  long  residence 
abroad,  he  retired  to  the  old  homestead  at  Cooperstown,  New 
York.  During  his  absence,  the  villagers  had  used  a  piece  of 
property  belonging  to  the  novelist  as  a  sort  of  recreation  spot. 
It  was  one  of  those  numerous  points  which  run  out  into  Otsego 
Lake  and  was  near  enough  to  the  village  to  be  ideal  for  picnic 
purposes.  Acting  strictly  within  his  legal  rights  Cooper  forbade 
trespassing  upon  this  piece  of  property.  The  resentment  of  the 
village  was  so  bitter  that  it  attracted  the  attention  of  the  many 
newspapers  of  the  State,  including  that  of  a  Whig  organ  at 
Norwich,  New  York,  which  told  how  the  Cooper  books  had 
been  removed  from  the  village  library  and  burned.  The  local 
Whig  organ  at  Cooperstown  reprinted  the  item  from  its  Norwich 
contemporary  and  was  promptly  sued  for  libel  by  Cooper,  who 
"  recovered  the  verdict  and  collected  it  by  taking  the  money  — 
through  a  Sheriff's  officer  —  from  the  editor's  trunk."  Various 
Whig  papers,  not  only  in  the  vicinity  of  Cooperstown,  but  also 
New  York  City,  promptly  took  up  the  fight.  Not  content  with 
merely  criticizing  Cooper's  action  in  his  home  town,  it  proceeded 
to  criticize  very  severely  Cooper's  criticism  of  American  ways 
and  manners  found  in  his  two  books,  " Homeward  Bound"  and 
" Home  as  Found." 

Among  the  New  York  newspapers  which  thus  criticized 
Cooper  were  The  Courier  and  Enquirer,  edited  by  James  Watson 


222       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Webb,  and  The  Commercial  Advertiser,  edited  by  William  L. 
Stone.  Cooper  promptly  brought  suit  against  them  both.  In  his 
action  against  Colonel  Webb,  his  suit  was  for  criminal  libel  and 
the  jury  returned  the  verdict  of  not  guilty.  Cooper  found  that  it 
was  much  harder  to  send  a  man  to  jail  for  libel  than  it  was  to 
collect  monetary  damage  for  a  reputation.  Cooper  therefore 
had  better  success  when  he  brought  suit  against  Thurlow  Weed, 
the  editor  of  The  Albany  Evening  Journal,  who  published  several 
unfavorable  notices  about  Cooper  and  his  books.  Weed  at  the 
time  of  the  suit  was  unable  to  be  present  on  account  of  sickness 
in  his  family  and  a  verdict  of  four  hundred  dollars  against  him 
was  given  to  Cooper.  Weed  sought  in  vain  to  have  the  case 
reopened.  Finding  himself  unsuccessful,  he  proceeded  to  set 
forth  his  case  in  a  letter  to  The  New  York  Tribune  published  on 
November  17,  1841.  For  the  publication  of  this  letter  Cooper 
brought  suit  against  Greeley  for  libel.  The  jury,  after  several 
ballots,  finally  returned  the  verdict  of  two  hundred  dollars. 
Greeley  having  attended  the  trial  in  person  proceeded  to  re- 
port the  event  for  his  own  paper.  The  report  came  within  three 
quarters  of  a  column  of  filling  the  entire  inside  of  The  Tribune, 
which  he  headed  "The  Cooperage  of  The  Tribune."  Extracts 
were  printed  in  more  than  two  hundred  papers  and  the  novelist 
proceeded  to  bring  suit  for  a  new  libel  —  several  of  them,  in  fact. 
Greeley,  now  thoroughly  aroused,  prepared  to  take  the  suits 
more  seriously  and  hired  the  Honorable  William  H.  Seward 
as  his  attorney.  The  latter,  by  various  hearings  on  demurrer 
and  by  numerous  expensive  interlocutory  proceedings,  pre- 
vented the  case  coming  to  trial. 

\l   PRESS  RESTRICTIONS   OF  THE   SENATE 

The  Senate  in  1841  attempted  to  exclude  reporters  from  its 
Chamber  on  the  ground  that  the  regulations  provided  only  for 
the  admission  of  representatives  from  Washington  newspapers. 
This  attempt  of  exclusion  was  the  last  stand  to  favor  the  party 
organs  of  the  Capital.  For  years  these  organs  had  been  making 
enormous  sums  for  printing  the  reports  of  Congress.  Henry  Clay 
asserted  that  $420,000  was  thus  paid  to  the  three  Washington 
organs,  The  Globe,  run  by  Blair  and  Rieves,  The  National  In- 


TRANSITION  PERIOD  223 

telligencer,  run  by  Gales  and  Sea  top,  and  The  Madisonian,  run  by 
Thomas  Align.  James  (lordon  Rftpnett,  of  The  New  York  Herald, 
promptly  attacked  this~Favbritism  and  announced  that  he  was 
willing  to  give  daily  reports  at  the  Senate  without  any  remu- 
neration. Out  of  his  efforts  ^rew  thq  "fwwlnm  rfi  fjjp  pr^gg"  for 
all  newspaper  correspondents  at  Washington. 

SENSATIONAL  NEWS   OF  THE   PERIOD 

In  1843  The  United  States  Gazette  published  the  statistics  of  the 
murders  and  other  crimes  recordea  in  its  pages  from  January 
to  July  of  that  year.  The  account  sbowe.fi  over  nine  hundred 
accidental  dearths,  of  which  fully  one  half  came  irom  drowning. 

TlWg  wprp  t.wn  VmnHrpfj  anH  fiff.PAn   TY^j|v|prg  by  glUlS,  pistols, 

bowie-knives,  etc. ;  there  were  fifty-six  deaths  by  firearms  which 
were  imprudently  handled;  forty-five  died  from  clothing  taking 
fire;  forty-six  were  struck  by  lightning;  forty-three  were  killed 
by  falling  from  horses  or  by  the  upsetting  of  carriages,  etc.; 
eighty-three  committed  suicide.  From  this  account,  which  was 
copied  by  many  newspapers  to  show  that  they  had  not  been 
beaten  in  recording  such  catastrophes,  it  is  evident  that  the  news- 
papers even  at  this  time  were  not  neglecting  the  so-called  sen- 
sational news. 

PARTY  PATRONAGE  VS.    "THE   POST" 

As  late  asj£25  the  National  Government  still  exerted_ 
mendous  infltfeTOe  through  ilu  paliuMge  in  moulding  American 
newspapers^  Party  organs  were  kept  strictly  in  line  by  the 
threat  which  continually  hung  over  them  of  "Stop  the  Govern- 
ment advertising."  Bribes  for  party  support  were  fairly  num- 
erous. Criticism  of  any  department  of  the  Government  was 
dangerous.  For  example,  because  The  New  York  Evening  Post 
criticized  the  seditious  doctrines  of  the  Postmaster-General  in  the 
matter  of  the  destruction  of  Northern  papers  circulated  in  the 
South,  the  official  list  of  letters  uncalled  for  in  the  New  York  Post- 
Office  was  transferred  to  The  New  York  Times  (not  the  paper 
which  bears  that  name  to-day).  Because  The  New  York  Evening 
Post  believed  the  tone  of  a  letter  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treas- 
ury to  the  President  of  the  United  States  Bank  was  undignified, 


224       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

the  Treasury  Department  withheld  its  advertising  in  The  Post. 
Because  The  New  York  Evening  Post  thought  the  Secretary  of 
the  Navy  had  acted  with  gross  partiality  in  a  naval  court-martial, 
advertising  from  that  department  in  The  Post  was  promptly  can- 
celled. Because  The  Evening  Post  exposed  the  duplicity  of  the 
*  \  Collector  of  the  Port  of  New  York,  it  lost  the  advertising  supplied 
-  by  the  Custom  House.  In  view  of  the  " Government  patronage" 
of  the  day,  independence  of  the  press  was  very  expensive  in 
1835,  but  William  Leggett  hewed  to  an  upright  line  in  his 
Evening  Post  and  let  the  Government  patronage  chips  fall  where 
they  would. 

ADVERTISING   OF  THE   PERIOD 

Before  the  advent  of  the  penny  press  the  advertiser  usually 
took  a  " square"  in  the  newspaper  for  which  he  paid  thirty  dol- 
lars a  year :  this  amount  also  included  a  subscription  to  the  news- 
paper. After  the  first  year  the  advertiser  sometimes  paid  and 
not  infrequently  he  neglected  to  do  so.  As  the  number  of  adver- 
tisers increased,  the  size  of  the  sheets  was  enlarged  until  they 
became  too  bulky  to  hold  conveniently  in  the  hands.  For  this 
reason  they  were  called  by  the  penny  papers  "our  bed-quilt 
contemporaries. ' ' 

The  first  penny  papers  asked  the  same  rate  of  thirty  dollars  per 
year  for  advertising,  but  the  squares  were  smaller,  and  the  sum 
did  not  include  a  subscription  to  the  paper.  Later,  the  penny 
papers  adjusted  their  prices  for  advertising  according  to  a  more 
modern  rate  card  and  insisted  that  advertisers  change  their  copy 
more  frequently.  They  developed  a  new  field  with  the  small  ad- 
vertiser: what  is  now  called  " classified  advertising"  began^jto 
make  its  appearance. 

^ln  Infill1  hrsi  issues  penny  papers  reprinted  somewhat  more 
desirable  advertising,  such  as  railroads,  steamboats,  stage- 
coaches, etc.-,  and  inserted  a  notice  similar  to  the  following  — 
taken  from  The  New  York  Daily  Bee :  — 

The  advertisements  inserted  in  this  number  we  insert  gratuitously, 
hoping  to  obtain  the  patronage  of  the  advertising  public,  as  this  will  be 
our  greatest  support.  We  would  respectfully  request  those  persons  whose 
advertisements  are  inserted,  if  they  wish  to  have  them  continued  to  call 
and  make  it  known. 


PHILADELPHIA 

STOVE 

MANUFACTORY, 

No.  189  N  Second  street, 
two  dtiors  below  the  sitfn  of 
the  Barley  Sheuf,  between 
H-.ce  and"  Vine  streets. — 
HENRYJ.FOUGE.RAY  re- 
spectfully informs  the  citi- 
zens of 'the  U.  States  that 
he  continues  to  manufacture 
an  extensive  assortment  of 
his  Patent  Stoves,  for  burn- 
ing Lehigh'ami  Schuylkill 
Coal,  for  Churches,  Halls,  Parlours,  Kitchens,  Offices, 
Sec,  together  with  Nine  Plate,  Open  and  Cahin 
Stoves,  Cambouses,  Backs,  Jams,  &.c.  All  of  which 
lie  will  dispose  of  at  low  prices. 

N  B.~  Cash  given  for  Old  Stoves  and  Scrap  Iron, 
or  taken  In  exchange.  au£  !8-6m 

Approved  Cook  Stoves   Perpetual   Orcn,   &c. 

No.  Ill   North 
Second  street,  Phi 
ladelphia. 

GEO  J.FOUGE- 
I?AV  informs  the 
citizens  of  the 
United  States  that 
he  continues  to 
manufacture  his 
approved  Cook 
Stoves,  to  burn 
coal  and  wood, 
with  stoves  for 
churches,  halls, 
offices,  stores,  &c. 

Also,  Perpetual 
Ovens. 

N.  H.  All  kinds 

of  old  Stoves  and 

tjJPi 

Irpn   taken  in 

ADVERTISEMENTS   IN  THE  PHILADELPHIA  AURORA 
Showing  free  use  of  Cuts  before  the  Invention  of  Cylinder  Presses 

(Enlarged) 


TRANSITION  PERIOD  225 

Legal  notices  found  in  six-penny  contemporaries  were  reprinted 
by  the  cheaper  papers  and  bills  mailed  to  county  officials.  Al- 
though unauthorized,  these  bills  were  paid  because  politicians 
did  not  dare  to  offend  the  penny  sheets  who  were  in  a  position  to 
expose  the  petty  grafts  of  the  period.  Before  the  type-revolving 
cylinder  press  made  its  appearance,  many  of  the  newspapers  were 
so  profusely  illustrated  that  they  resembled  catalogues  rather 
than  newspapers.  Some  of  the  more  fastidious  sheets  seriously 
objected  to  the  use  of  these  cuts  which  gave  such  a  black  appear- 
ance to  the  newspaper,  and  charged  extra  for  their  insertion  even 
though  no  extra  mechanical  labor  was  involved. 

EPIDEMIC   OF  MEDICINAL   ADVERTISING 

During  the  Colonial  Period  the  newspaper  publisher  was  often 
a  seller  of  medicines.  There  were  several  reasons  for  this;  one 
was  that  the  colonial  printer  was  forced  by  necessity  to  supple- 
ment the  income  from  his  press  by  that  from  other  sources; 
medicinal  preparations,  then,  as  now,  allowed  large  profits.  In 
the  second  place,  the  early  settler  was  forced  by  isolation  to  be 
his  own  doctor.  What  was  more  natural,  therefore,  than  that 
the  post-rider  who  brought  The  Gazette  should  also  bring  house- 
hold remedies  for  cases  of  emergency.  It  made  matters  easier 
when  both  these  items  could  be  purchased  at  the  same  shop.  The 
American,  forced  by  necessity  to  be  his  own  doctor,  soon  came 
to  be  his  own  doctor  from  choice.  All  that  was  needed  to  increase 
the  sale  of  pills  and  powders  was  an  epidemic  of  bodily  ills.  This 
"curse"  came  at  about  the  time  that  the  masses  were  getting 
the  penny  press.  An  epidemic  of  dancing  swept  across  the 
country.  Previously,  balls  had  been  confined  to  the  more  aris- 
tocratic gatherings,  but  dances  became  popular  with  the  me- 
chanics, the  gatherers  of  ashes,  the  clerks  in  shops,  etc.  Econo- 
mists who  have  studied  this  period  of  American  history  say 
that  the  amount  spent  on  balls  by  all  manner  of  society  was 
simply  enormous.  Dancing  was  prolonged  into  the  morning 
hours.  Ventilation  of  ballrooms  was  then  so  poor  that  the 
result  was  a  flood  of  almost  all  ills  to  which  the  human  body 
is  heir.  Manufacturers  of  proprietary  medicines  found  they 
could  reap  a  fortune  by  advertising  their  nostrums  in  the  public 


226       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

press.  They  did  so  and  on  the  profits  of  the  sales  of  such  medi- 
cines were  founded  some  of  the  large  fortunes  of  later  years. 
Some  of  the  concoctions  of  this  period  were  simply  colored  water 
and  were  absolutely  harmless;  but  others  contained  absolute 
poisons.  The  injurious  effect  of  such  widespread  doping  was 
checked  by  threatened  legislation  by  various  States.  In  this  way 
the  worst  of  the  positively  injurious  " remedies"  were  eliminated 
from  the  advertising  columns,  but  the  press,  not  only  in  the 
rural  sections,  but  also  in  the  cities,  continued  its  partnership 
in  dosing  the  American  people.  ^lany  newspaper  men  actually 
wrote  the  advertisements;  for  instance,  Hen^Jarvis.fiajaaaond, 
who  later  became  the  distinguished  fnn*fTffr"nf  Tlip.  N^n  Ynrk 
Tirnes,  increased  his  income  by  writing  daily  advertisements  of 
medicinal  pills  for  a  quack  doctor  for  which  he  received  a  re- 
muneration of  fifty  cents  for  each  piece  of  copy. 

As  late  as  1881  Charles  W.  Warner  complained  that  the  news- 
paper columns  "outshine  the  shelves  of  the  druggist  in  the  dis- 
play of  proprietary  medicines."  Many  excellent  newspapers, 
for  thirty  years  after  this  remark,  continued  to  be,  so  far  as  the 
advertising  columns  were  concerned,  directories  of  patent  medi- 
cines until  Samuel  Hopkins  Adams,  in  a  series  of  articles  in 
Collier's  Weekly,  entitled  "The  Great  American  Fraud,"  exposed 
the  chicanery  of  patent  medicine  manufacturers  and  the  worth- 
lessness  of  many  of  their  concoctions. 

FEDERAL  SUPERVISION  ADVOCATED 

By  a  ruling  of  the  Postmaster-General,  Amos  Kendall,  in  1835, 
the  coaches  having  mail  contracts  were  not  permitted  to  carry 
passengers  on  their  Western  trips  until  provision  was  made  for 
all  the  mail  matter  addressed  to  the  West.  Similar  restrictions 
were  placed  upon  the  mail  routes  along  the  Atlantic  seaboard. 
When  the  newspapers  in  the  North  began  to  advocate  the  aboli- 
tion of  slavery  it  raised  a  howl  of  protest  in  the  South.  Charles- 
ton, in  South  Carolina,  particularly  objected  to  the  circulation  of 
such  newspapers.  The  postmaster  in  that  city  held  such  news- 
papers in  his  office  pending  instructions  from  the  Postmaster- 
General.  The  latter  side-stepped  the  question  by  saying  that  he 
had  no  legal  authority  to  issue  instructions  on  this  technical 


TRANSITION  PERIOD  227 

point.  Before  the  Department  handed  out  a  ruling,  a  public 
meeting  was  held  and  a  resolution  unanimously  adopted  that 
all  incendiary  newspapers  held  at  Charleston  should  be  burned 
and  that  the  mails  in  the  State  should  be  searched  and  every 
attempt  be  made  to  suppress  inflammatory  newspapers,  and 
suggested  the  propriety  of  passing  a  law  that  would  prohibit 
under  severe  penalties  the  circulation  in  Southern  States  of  news- 
papers which  tended  to  instigate  the  slaves  to  insurrection. 

President  Jackson,  in  his  Inaugural  Message,  advocated  the 
right  of  Federal  supervision  of  newspapers.  This  recommenda- 
tion by  President  Jackson  was  referred  by  the  Senate  to  a  com- 
mittee of  which  the  chairman  was  John  C.  Calhoun,  of  South 
Carolina.  Speaking  for  the  committee,  Calhoun  reported  on  Feb- 
ruary 14,  1826,  that  it  was  not  up  to  Congress  to  decide  when 
newspapers  were  incendiary,  for  they  might  also  decide  they 
were  not,  and  thus  laden  the  mails  of  the  South  with  papers 
advocating  abolition.  He  insisted  that  it  belonged  to  the 
Southern  States  and  not  to  Congress  to  determine  what  news- 
papers should  circulate  in  that  section.  He  also  proposed  that 
it  should  not  be  lawful  for  any  postmaster  in  any  State  or 
Territory  of  the  United  States  knowingly  to  deliver  to  any 
person  any  newspaper  touching  the  subject  of  slavery.  Cal- 
houn's  recommendations  were  put  in  a  bill  which  was  ordered 
to  a  third  reading  in  the  Senate  by  a  vote  of  18  to  16,  but  it 
failed  to  pass. 

STATISTICAL  RESUME 

The  Postal  Department  requested  The  Globe  to  publish  the  fol- 
lowing information  —  doubtless  to  be  paid  for  at  regular  rates 
—  about  the  newspapers  and  periodicals  published  in  the 
United  States,  July  1,  1839:  — 

Maine 41 

New  Hampshire 26 

Vermont 31 

Massachusetts  (at  Boston,  65) 124 

Rhode  Island 14 

Connecticut 31 

New  York  (at  New  York  City,  71) 274 

New  Jersey 39 


228       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Maryland  (at  Baltimore,  20) 48 

Pennyslvania  (at  Philadelphia,  71) 253 

Delaware 3 

District  of  Columbia  (at  Washington,  11) 16 

Virginia  (at  Richmond,  10) 52 

North  Carolina 30 

South  Carolina 20 

Georgia 33 

Florida  Territory 9 

Alabama 34 

Mississippi 36 

Louisiana  (at  New  Orleans,  10) 26 

Arkansas 4 

Tennessee 50 

Kentucky 31 

Ohio  (at  Cincinnati,  27) 164 

Michigan 31 

Wisconsin  Territory 5 

Iowa  Territory 3 

Indiana 69 

Illinois 33 

Missouri 25           A  — 

1555    "/ wy 

The  account  then  went  on  to  say  that  of  the  above  publica- 
tions, 116  were  daily  newspapers,  14  tri- weeklies,  30  semi- 
weeklies,  and  991  weeklies.  The  rest  were  semi-monthlies, 
monthlies,  and  quarterlies  —  principally  magazines  and  reviews. 
Mention  was  also  made  of  the  fact  that  many  of  the  daily  papers 
were  also  publishers  of  the  tri-weeklies,  semi-weeklies,  and 
weeklies.  Of  the  newspapers,  38  were  in  the  German  language, 
4  in  French,  and  1  in  Spanish.  Attention  was  also  called  to  the 
fact  that  several  of  the  New  Orleans  papers  were  printed  in 
French  and  English. 

The  statistics  of  the  newspaper  press  made  an  interesting 
feature  in  the  returns  of  the  Seventh  Census.  From  that  it 
appeared  that  the  whole  number  of  newspapers  and  periodicals 
in  the  United  States,  on  the  first  day  of  June,  J85D.  amounted 
to  2800.  From  calculations  made  on  the  statistics  returned,  it 
appeared  that  the  aggregate  circulation  of  these  2800  papers 
and  periodicals  was  about  5,000,000. 

The  following  table,  taken  from  an  abstract  of  the  Census 
Report,  shows  the  numbers  of  daily,  weekly,  monthly,  and  other 
issues  with  the  aggregate  circulation  of  each  class  in  1850:  — 


TRANSITION  PERIOD 


229 


Number 

Circulation 

No.  of  copies 
printed 
annually 

Dailies  

350 

750,000 

235,000,000 

Tri-  weeklies  

150 

75,000 

11,700,000 

Semi-weeklies  

125 

80,000 

8,320,000 

Weeklies 

2000 

2875000 

149500000 

Semi-monthlies  

50 

300000 

7  200  000 

Monthlies             

100 

900000 

10800000 

Quarterlies  

25 

20000 

80000 

2,800 

5,000,000 

422,600,000 

' 

CHAPTER  XIV 

BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  AND  TERRITORIES 
1833—1873 

ALL  the  editors  who  had  joined  the  Westward  advance  in  jour- 
nalism had  one  characteristic  in  common:  they  had  the  most 
sublime  faith  that  the  section  where  they  settled  was  to  become 
an  influential  part  of  the  country  at  large.  In  the  code  of  these 
pioneer  editors,  optimism  was  ever  present.  Such  a  quality  was 
necessary,  for  often  preparations  were  made  to  bring  out  a 
newspaper  before  a  sufficient  number  of  subscribers  to  support 
the  enterprise  had  arrived  on  the  scene.  The  homes  of  these 
pioneer  newspapers  were  at  the  start  to  be  found  in  the  rude  tent 
of  the  camper,  the  dug-out  of  the  prairie,  and  the  log  cabin  of  the 
mountain. 

Often  the  story  of  these  beginnings  is  more  interesting  than 
the  contents  of  the  newspapers.  But  few  copies  of  the  earliest 
papers  in  the  territory  covered  in  this  chapter  have  been  pre- 
served. The  greatest  loss,  however,  was  not  that  of  the  printed 
sheets,  but  that  of  the  written  precursors  which  were  sold  on 
the  mountain  trails  and  paid  for  with  gold  taken  in  tin  pans 
from  the  bed  of  a  neighboring  stream.  In  the  South  printing 
materials  came  by  way  of  Mexico:  in  the  Far  West  they  went 
with  the  immigrant  train  over  the  desert :  on  the  Pacific  Coast 
they  came  by  ship  around  Cape  Horn. 

Before  making  any  criticism  of  the  contents  of  these  early 
papers,  one  must  remember  that  the  men  who  blazed  the  trail 
through  Western  wilds  were  not  discriminating  readers.  They 
cared  more  for  interesting  subject-matter  than  for  literary  mode 
of  treatment.  Their  respect  was  commanded  only  by  the  editor 
who  could  fight  with  his  gun  as  well  as  with  his  pen.  Illustra- 
tions hi  proof  of  the  assertion  just  made  will  be  found  in  the  pages 
which  follow. 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  AND  TERRITORIES    231 

EARLY  WISCONSIN  WEEKLIES 

The  frontier  printer  occasionally  started  his  paper  before  the 
arrival  of  other  settlers.  With  intuitive  foresight  he  seemed  to 
kno.w  probable  locations  of  settlements  along  rivers  and  at  the 
junction  of  smaller  streams.  Typical  of  papers  thus  established 
was  The.  ft/Yrrgr  of  Newport,  one  of  the  pioneer  papers  o£JKi** 
consin^  but  by  no  means  the  first.  Its  editor,  Alanson  Holly, 
very  graphically  mirrored  the  Westward  movement  of  journal- 
ism in  his  salutatory  greeting:  — 

We  are  doing  what,  perhaps,  has  never  been  done  in  the  United 
States  before — We  are  printing  The  Wisconsin  Mirror  in  the  woods. 
Not  a  dwelling,  except  our  own,  within  half  a  mile  of  us,  and  only  one 
within  a  mile.  The  forest  oaks  hang  over  our  office  and  dwelling,  the 
deer  and  rabbits  shy  around  us,  and  the  partridges  and  quails  seek  our 
acquaintance,  by  venturing  nearer  and  nearer  our  doors.  The  noble  Wis- 
consin is  bearing  onward  its  immense  burdens  of  ice,  majestically  and 
silently,  within  sight  of  our  windows;  and  the  snow-capped  hills,  covered 
with  scattering  oaks  and  pines,  peer  up  in  the  distance.  There  is  ro- 
mance and  reality  in  all  this,  and  we  feel  almost  willing  to  publish  a 
paper  in  such  a  location,  just  for  the  excitement  of  the  thing.  But  most 
of  the  romance  is  soon  to  be  spoiled.  Already,  several  dwellings  are  in 
progress  near  us  and  before  many  weeks  they  are  to  be  occupied  by 
enterprising  neighbors,  and  when  spring  and  summer  shall  come,  we 
expect  such  a  chatter  of  axes  and  spades,  and  trowels,  and  saws,  and 
hammers,  that  we  shall  hardly  be  able  to  write  our  editorials  without 
introducing  more  or  less  confusion.  The  fact  is,  we  expect  a  large 
village,  yea,  a  city,  to  grow  up  rapidly  around  us;  and  that  is  why  we 
are  here  —  printing  in  the  woods. 

Mr.  Holly  was  in  error  when  he  thought  his  paper  was  the 
first  to  be  printed  "in  the  woods."  Other  papers  had  been 
started  under  conditions  even  more  primitive  with  the  type  set 
under  the  oaks  themselves. 

t  Not  infrequently  the  paper  was  published  to  advertise  the 
attractions  of  the  settlement  and  to  promote  immigration.  For 
these  reasons  D.  H.  Richards  founded  in  July,  1K36.  The  Mil- 
ipaukee  Advertiser,  the  first  paper  in  the  city  and  the  third  in  the 
State!  Incidentally,  The  Advertiser  was  also  issued  to  advance 
the  interest  of  the  Milwaukee  and  Rock  River  Canal.  In  March, 


232       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

1841,  Richards  sold  the  paper  to  Josiah  A.  Noolan,  who  changed 
its  name  to  The  Courier.  The  latter  was  succeeded  by  The  Wis- 
consin. 

•  Pioneer  papers  were  invariably  begun  as  weeklies,  but  even 
Ithen  they  were  often  irregular  in  appearance.  Such  was  the  case 
lof  The  Green  Bay  Intelligencer,  the  first  paper  in  Wisconsin 
Territory,  begun  on  December  11, 1833,  by  John  V.  Suydam  and 
Albert  Ellis.  The  following  year  the  latter,  becoming  the  sole 
proprietor,  continued  as  publisher  until  June  1,  1835,  when  he 
accepted  C.  P.  Arndt  as  a  partner.  In  August,  1836,  The  In- 
telligencer united  with  The  Wisconsin  Free  Press,  which  had 
been  in  existence  just  a  year  and  was  the  second  paper  in  Wis- 
consin, to  form  The  Democrat.  In  the  spring  of  1840  the  paper 
last  mentioned  went  to  Kenosha,  where  it  was  published  as 
The  Telegraph. 

GENESIS  OF  KANSAS  JOURNALISM 

Kansas  ever  has  been,  and  is,  a  great  newspaper  State.  Its 
journalism,  in  the  strict  sense  of  that  term,  dates  from  March 
1,  1835,  when  there  appeared  at  the  Baptist  Mission  £h& 
Shawanoe  Sun.  Published  exclusively  in  the  Indian  language,  it 
was  a  small  quarter-sheet  edited  by  the  Reverend  Johnston  Ly- 
kins  and  printed  on  the  Mission  press  by  Jotham  Meeker.  In 
the  spring  of  1837,  when  Meeker  went  to  the  Ottawa  Mission  in 
Franklin  County,  the  paper  was  printed  by  J.  G.  Pratt  until 
1839,  when  it  was  discontinued  on  account  of  the  illness  of  its 
publisher.  The  old-fashioned  press  of  the  Mission  was  later 
taken  to  Prairie  City  and  used  to  print  The  Freeman's  Champion 
first  issued  on  June  25,  1857,  in  a  home-made  tent,  the  gift  of 
the  women  of  that  place. 

The  earliest  English  newspaper  in  Kansas  was  The  Kansas 
dy  Herald,  first  brought  out  in  Lea\enworth  on  September 
15,,jg54,  by  Qgborn  Adams.  It  was  started  before  there  was 
a  single"  permanent  building"  in  Leaven  worth:  only  four  tem- 
porary tents  had  been  raised  before  a  type-setter  was  at  work, 
under  an  old  elm  tree,  on  the  first  number.  An  editorial  remark 
in  the  first  issue  said:  "Our  editorials  have  been  written  and  our 
proof  corrected  while  sitting  on  the  ground  with  a  big  shingle 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  AND  TERRITORIES    233 

for  a  table."  In  1859  it  became  a  daily,  but  suspended  in  1861 
on  the  death  of  its  owner. 

The  same  year  that  The  Kansas  Weekly  Herald  was  started, 
a  second  paper,  The  Pioneer,  was  begun  at  Kickapoo.  The  next 
year  saw  three  established  at  Lawrence.  The  first  of  these, 
started  on  January  5,  1855,  by  John  Spear,  was  The  Kansas 
Tribune.  In  November  it  suspended  for  a  few  weeks  and  later 
removed  to  Topeka.  On  January  6,  1855,  just  one  day  after 
The  Tribune  was  founded,  The  Herald  of  Freedom  appeared  at 
Lawrence  under  the  direction  of  George  W.  Brown.  One  num- 
ber of  the  paper,  dated  October  21,  1854,  had  been  printed  at 
Wakarusa,  Pennsylvania.  After  publishing  this  issue,  Brown 
moved  to  Lawrence,  where,  with  the  help  of  a  few  settlers,  he 
set  up  a  log  printing-office.  The  third  paper  to  be  established  at 
Lawrence  in  1855  was  The  Kansas  Free  State.  Both  The  Free 
State  and  The  Herald  of  Freedom  figured  conspicuously  in  the 
exciting  times  of  '55  and  '56. 

In  striking  contrast  to  these  papers  published  at  Lawrence 
was  The  Squatter  Sovereign,  started  on  February  3,  1855,  at 
Atchison  by  John  H.  Stringfellow  and  Robert  S.  Kelly.  In  a 
way  the  paper  was  the  successor  of  The  Democratic  Platform, 
which  Kelly  had  published  at  Liberty,  Missouri,  in  the  interest 
of  slavery.  The  Squatter  Sovereign  was  practically  the  organ  of 
the  Border  Ruffians  and  fought  most  bitterly  the  Free  State 
papers  then  in  existence  in  "bleeding  Kansas."  After  the  ex- 
citing years  of  '55  and  '56,  The  Squatter  Sovereign  passed  into 
the  hands  of  other  owners  who  gave  it  another  name  and  re- 
versed its  editorial  policies.  One  of  the  earliest,  if  not  the  first, 
daily  paper  published  west  of  the  Missouri  River  was  The 
Daily  Kansas  Freeman  begun  at  Shawnee  on  October  24,  1855. 
The  times  were  evidently  too  exciting  and  the  threats  of  the 
Border  Ruffians  to  destroy  the  paper  were  too  frequent  to  war- 
rant a  continuance  of  the  sheet,  for  it  suspended  on  November  7. 

DAWN   OF   NEW   MEXICO   JOURNALISM 

In  strict  accuracy  the  first  newspaper  printed  in  New  Mex- 
ico was  Kl  Crp.pufipuln  (FThp.  Dawn)  and  was  first  published  by 
Antonio  "Jose*  Martinez  in  Taos,  November  29,  1§3&.  But  four 


234       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

numbers  of  El  Crepusculo  were  issued  and  these  were  on  paper 
the  size  of  foolscap.  The  paper  failed  to  pay  expenses  and  was 
suspended  after  the  four  issues. 

The  first  newspaper,  however,  to  be  printed  in  English,  either 
in  whole  or  in  part,  was  The  Santa  Fe  Republican.  This  paper 
was  a  four-page  weekly  irr4we^parts  —  two  in  Spanish  and 
two  in  English  —  and  made  its  appearance  in  Santa  F6  on 
September  4,  1847.  Its  publishers  were  Hovey  and  Davies  and 
its  editor,  G.  fe*tfibson. 

The  New  Mexican  was  started  at  Santa  F6  on  December  1, 
1849,  by  Davies  and  Hones.  This  paper,  however,  is  not  to  be 
confused  with  the  present  New  Mexican,  started  by  Charles 
Leiv  on  January  22,  1863. 

INITIAL   PAPERS   OF  IOWA 

The  first  paper  in  Iowa  was  The  Dubuque  Visitor,  brought  out 
at  the  Dubuque  Lead  Mines,  ~at-thSt  tune  uTWisconsin  Terri- 
tory, by  John  King  on  May  11,  J.836.  He  had  founded  the 
Dubuque  Lead  Mine  in  1834  and  was  satisfied  that  the  little 
village  would  grow  and  become  a  prosperous  city.  Having  pur- 
chased in  Cincinnati  a  hand-press,  some  type,  and  material 
sufficient  to  issue  a  small  weekly  paper,  he  returned  to  Du- 
buque. William  Carey  Jones,  a  young  printer  from  Chillicothe, 
accompanied  King  to  take  charge  of  the  mechanical  side  of  the 
paper.  On  June  3,  1837,  a  new  owner  changed  the  title  to  The 
Iowa  News,  and  the  name  of  the  paper  was  again  changed  on 
August  1,  1841,  to  The  Miner's  Express.  When  on  April  19, 
1851,  a  new  publication,  The  Dubuque  Herald,  appeared,  The 
Miner's  Express  made  preparation  to  bring  out  a  daily  paper.  On 
August  19  of  that  year  it  published  the  first  daily  paper  north 
of  St.  Louis  or  west  of  the  Mississippi.  The  Herald  met  this  move 
by  also  changing  to  a  daily  paper  and  the  competition  became 
so  keen  between  the  two  that  a  merger  became  necessary  and 
on  October  26,  1854,  the  two  papers  united  under  the  title, 
The  Daily  Express  and  Herald  —  later  changed  to  The  Daily 
Herald.  On  August  27,  1901,  the  paper  absorbed  The  Dubuque 
Daily  Telegraph.  The  paper  is  now  continued  as  The  Telegraph 
and  Herald. 


BEGINNINGS_  IN  STATES  AND  TERRITORIES    235 

The  second  paper  in  Iowa  was  started  at  Mount  Rose  in  1836 
by  Dr.  Isaac  Glalland.  He  called  his  paper  The  Western  Ad- 
venturer. After  a  struggle  of  two  years  he  took  it  to  Fort  Madi- 
son, where  it  was  purchased  by  James  G.  Edwards,  who,  on 
March  24,  1838,  converted  it  to  a  Whig  sheet  called  The  Fort 
Madison  Patriot.  The  paper  was  finally  moved  to  Burlington 
where  it  is  now  known  as  The  Hawk-Eye.  On  August  4,  1838, 
The  Iowa  Sun  and  Davenport  and  Rock  Island  News  appeared 
simultaneously  at  Davenport,  Iowa,  and  at  Stephenson  (now 
Rock  Island,  Illinois),  and  was  published  by  Andrew  Logan.  The 
fourth  paper  was  The  Iowa  Standard,  first  brought  out  at  Bloom- 
ington  October  23,  1840,  and  a  year  later  removed  to  Iowa  City. 

The  Iowa  Standard  was  only  four  days  ahead  of  The  Bloom- 
ington  Herald,  issued  on  October  27,  1840,  with  Thomas  Hughes 
and  John  B.  Russell  as  editors.  This  paper,  after  some  changes, 
became  The  Muscatine  Journal,  under  which  name  it  is  still 
published.  The  Courier  was  established  at  Fort  Madison  by 
R.  Wilson  Albright  on  July  24,  1841. 

INDIAN  PAPERS  OF  OKLAHOMA 

To  the  Cherokees  unquestionably  belongs  the  honor  of 
printing  the  first  and  many  of  the  early  papers  in  what  was 
the  Indian  Territory  but  is  now  the  State  of  Oklahoma.  The 
first  of  these  was  The  Cherokee  Messenger,  started  in  August, 
1844,  at  Cherokee  Baptist  Mission.  Edited  by  the  Reverend 
Evan  Jones,  it  was  more  of  a  religious  and  temperance  pamphlet 
than  a  newspaper:  printed  at  irregular  intervals  it  might  more 
justly  be  considered  the  precursor  of  journalism  in  the  Indian 
Territory. 

The  first  real  newspaper  was  the  national  organ  of  the  Chero- 
kee Nation.  Its  National  Council  on  October  25,  1843,  had 
passed  an  act  to  establish  a  printing-press  and  to  print  a  news- 
paper, and  on  September  26,  1844,  there  appeared  at  Tahlequah 
the  first  number  of  The  Cherokee  Advocate.  Under  the  editorship 
of  William  P.  Ross  it  was  printed  in  both  the  English  and  Cher- 
okee languages.  The  Cherokee  Nation  fixed  the  subscription 
price  at  three  dollars  per  year  "except  to  those  persons  who 
read  only  the  Cherokee  language  and  they  shall  pay  two  dollars." 


236       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

The  paper  was  discontinued  in  1853,  but  was  revived  again  in 
1870. 

Another  Indian  Journal,  The  Vindicator,  was  started  by  J.  H. 
Moore  at  New  Boggy  in  June,  1872,  in  the  interest  of  the  Choc- 
taws  and  Chickasaws.  It  afterwards  united  with  The  Okla- 
homa Star.  Still  another  Indian  paper  was  The  Indian  Journal, 
first  begun  in  May,  1876,  at  Muskogee  by  M.  P.  Roberts.  It 
was  the  official  organ  of  the  Creek  Nation. 

The  Territorial  Advocate,  started  at  Beaver  by  E.  E.  Eldridge 
in  May7l?&7,  was  the  first  real  English  newspaper  in  Oklahoma 
and  had  the  distinction  of  being  probably  the  only  newspaper 
ever  published  in  the  United  States  outside  the  pale  of  estab- 
lished law  of  any  character.  The  pan-handle  portion  of  the 
State  of  Oklahoma,  in  which  Beaver  is  located,  was  prior  to 
1889  known  as  "No  Man's  Land."  The  Advocate  is  now  pub- 
lished under  the  name  of  The  Beaver  Herald. 

The  first  paper  after  the  Territory  was  opened  was  one  issue 
of  The  Guthrie  Get-Up,  on  April  29,  1889.  It  was  a  small  sheet 
folded  in  the  center  and  printed  only  on  one  side.  Having  only 
one  issue  it  is  not,  strictly  speaking,  to  be  classed  as  a  news- 
paper. Its  immediate  successor  was  The  Oklahoma  State  Capitol, 
started  in  Guthrie  a  little  later.  The  latter  paper  survived  until 
1911  when  it  was  taken  over  by  The  Guthrie  Daily  Leader. 

ORIGIN  OF  JOURNALISM  IN  OREGON 

Oregon  City,  in  1844,  thought  it  ought  to  have  a  newspaper. 
Accordingly,  a  company  was  formed  known  as  the  Oregon 
Printing  Association.  According  to  the  articles  of  compact, 
the  following  regulation  was  set  down  for  the  guidance  of  the 
editor:  "The  press  owned  by,  or  in  connection  with,  this  Associ- 
ation shall  never  be  used  by  any  party  for  the  purpose  of  propa- 
gating sectarian  principles  or  doctrines;  nor  for  the  discussion  of 
exclusive  party  politics." 

As  soon  as  a  press  could  be  secured  from  New  York,  the  or- 
ganization brought  out  the  first  newspaper  in  Oregon  on  Thurs- 
day, February  5,  1846.  It  was  called  The  Oregon  Spectator  and 
had  for  its  motto,  "Westward  the  Star  of  Empire  takes  its 
Way."  Its  first  editor  was  Colonel  William  G.  T'Vault,  who  was 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  AND  TERRITORIES     237 

then  Postmaster-General  of  the  Provisional  Government,  and  its 
first  printer  was  John  Fleming,  who  had  immigrated  to  Oregon 
in  1844.  T' Vault  did  not  sit  long  in  the  editorial  chair,  for  on 
April  16,  1846,  the  name  of  Henry  A.  G.  Lee  appeared  as  the 
editor.  He  had  been  the  original  choice  of  the  Oregon  Printing 
Association,  but  had  wanted  a  salary  of  six  hundred  dollars, 
which  was  considered  too  exorbitant.  Mr.  Lee,  a  descendant 
of  Richard  Lee,  of  Virginia,  did  not  preside  over  the  editorial 
columns  much  longer  than  his  predecessor,  for  he  severed  his 
relations  with  the  issue  of  August  6,  1846.  For  two  months  fol- 
lowing, John  Fleming,  the  printer,  was  the  editor  of  the  paper. 

Early  in  October,  George  L.  Curry,  who  had  come  to  the 
Territory  of  Oregon  by  way  of  the  Cow  Prick  Canyon,  took  up 
the  editorial  reins  and  tried  to  direct  the  editorial  policies  with  a 
"firm  and  consistent  American  tone."  In  his  attempts  to  put 
his  theories  into  practice  he  was  severely  handicapped  by  the 
seigniorship  exercised  by  the  Oregon  Printing  Association.  So 
strained  became  the  relations  between  the  editor  and  pub- 
lishers of  the  paper  that  Mr.  Curry  resigned  in  1848.  After 
leaving  The  Spectator,  Mr.  Curry  decided  to  start  a  rival  news- 
paper and  accordingly  bought  about  eighty  pounds  of  type 
from  the  Catholic  Missionaries.  Having  no  press,  and  being 
unwilling  to  wait  until  one  could  be  secured  from  the  East,  he 
constructed  one  of  a  rude  sort  chiefly  out  of  wood  and  scrap 
iron.  The  type  which  he  had  purchased  from  the  Catholic  Mis- 
sionaries, and  which  had  been  used  to  print  religious  tracts  in 
French,  had  but  few  letter  "w's."  This  obstacle  was  overcome 
by  whittling  a  number  out  of  hard  wood.  The  typographical 
appearance  of  the  paper  printed  with  an  occasional  handmade 
"w"  may  well  be  imagined. 

Curry's  paper  was  called  The  Free  Press  and  lasted  until  Oc- 
tober, 1848,  when  it  ceased  publication,  largely  on  account  of  the 
wild  rush  of  subscribers  to  the  mines  in  the  Territory.  Inci- 
dentally, it  may  be  said  that  Curry  was  appointed  Governor  of 
the  Territory  of  Oregon  in  1854  and  held  that  office  until  1859. 
On  January  1,  1861,  he  joined  forces  with  S.  J.  McCormick,  of 
The  Portland  Daily  Advertiser,  started  on  May  31, 1859.  The  first 
daily,  however,  was  The  Daily  News,  begun  by  S.  A.  English 


238       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

and  W.  B.  Taylor,  April  18, 1859,  in  Portland.  After  Curry  left 
The  Spectator,  Aaron  E.  Wait,  a  native  of  Massachusetts,  be- 
came the  editor  and  on  February  10,  1848,  he  enlarged  the  paper 
to  twenty-four  columns. 

On  September  7  it  was  necessary  to  suspend  publication  be- 
cause its  printer,  John  Fleming,  had  left  for  the  mines.  The 
paper  appeared  again,  however,  on  October  12,  with  S.  Bentley 
as  printer  and  with  the  following  note  of  apology:  - 

The  Spectator,  after  a  temporary  sickness,  greets  its  patrons  and 
hopes  to  serve  them  faithfully  and,  as  heretofore,  regularly.  "That  gold 
fever"  which  has  swept  about  three  thousand  of  the  officers,  lawyers, 
physicians,  farmers,  and  mechanics  of  Oregon  from  the  Plains  of  Ore- 
gon into  the  mines  of  California,  took  away  our  printer  —  hence  the 
temporary  non-appearance  of  The  Spectator. 

Mr.  Wait  left  The  Spectator  with  the  issue  of  February  22, 
1849.  Soon  after  the  paper  suspended  publication  for  a  time, 
but  on  October  4,  1849,  the  Reverend  Wilson  Blain,  a  Pres- 
byterian clergyman,  revived  the  paper.  On  April  18,  1850, 
Robert  Moore  became  the  owner  of  The  Spectator,  but  he  retained 
Blain  as  its  editor. 

On  September  12,  D.  J.  Schnebly  became  the  editor  and 
about  a  year  later,  on  September  9,  1851,  he  became  the  owner. 
The  Spectator  frequently  had  trouble  in  getting  a  supply  of  white 
paper  on  which  to  print  the  news  and  had  to  change  its  size.  In 
1852  it  became  a  distinctly  political  newspaper  to  plead  the  cause 
of  the  Whig  Party.  It  failed  to  receive  sufficient  support  and 
was  compelled  to  suspend  on  March  16,  1852.  Even  after  it  was 
revived  in  August,  1853,  the  paper  was  not  well  supported  and 
finally  had  to  be  sold  to  C.  L.  Goodrich  in  the  latter  part  of  1854. 
With  the  permanent  suspension  of  The  Spectator  in  March, 
1855,  the  history  of  the  first  paper  in  Oregon  ends. 

A  month  later,  however,  W.  L.  Adams,  one  of  the  pioneers 
of  1847,  used  the  plant,  starting  The  Oregon  City  Argus  on  April 
21,  1855.  According  to  the  best  information  obtainable,  this 
was  the  first  real  Republican  paper,  not  only  in  Oregon,  but 
also  on  the  Pacific  Coast.  Mr.  Adams,  needing  a  printer,  em- 
ployed David  W.  Craig,  who  had  been  working  on  The  Oregon 
Statesman.  Starting  in  as  a  foreman,  Mr.  Craig  became  the 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  AND  TERRITORIES     239 

owner  of  The  Argus  on  April  16,  1859,  but  he  retained  his  former 
employer  as  editor  until  October  24,  1863.  On  that  date  The 
Statesman  and  The  Argus  consolidated  and  continued  publica- 
tion under  the  name  of  The  Statesman. 

The  Western  Star  was  the  fourth  paper  published  in  Oregon. 
This  paper  was  first  published  at  Milwaukie,  on  November  21, 
1850,  but  in  May,  1851,  was  moved  to  Portland.  Here  the 
name  The  Western  Star  was  dropped  and  a  new  one,  The  Oregon 
Weekly  Times,  was  selected  for  the  issue  of  June  5,  1851. 

The  Weekly  Oregonian,  the  fifth  paper  in  Oregon,  was  started 
December  4,  1850,  at  Portland.  Its  press  was  purchased  in 
1852  by  T.  F.  McElroy  and  J.  W.  Wiley,  who  took  it  to  Olympia 
and  on  it  printed  The  Columbian,  the  first  paper  north  of  the 
Columbia  River.  The  first  issue  was  dated  Saturday,  September 
11,  1852.  Six  months  later  the  editor  told  of  his  struggles  as 
follows:  "We  commenced  publication  without  a  subscriber  and 
without  a  dollar.  Since  that  time  we  have  kept  'batch/  done 
our  own  cooking  and  our  own  washing,  our  own  mending,  cut  our 
own  wood,  made  our  own  fires,  washed  our  own  dishes,  swept  out 
our  own  office,  made  up  our  own  bed,  and  composed  our  own 
editorials  out  of  the  cases  —  writing  paper  being  luxuries  which 
we  have  been  deprived  of  —  and  done  our  own  press  work.  Now 
we  have  three  hundred  and  fifty  subscribers."  Under  such 
difficulties  were  some  of  the  earlier  papers  on  the  Pacific  Coast 
produced. 

CATHOLIC   AND   MORMON   PRESSES   OF   CALIFORNIA 

At  Monterey^  Robert  Sempje,  former  editor  of  The  Phila- 
delphia North  American,  and  the  Reverend  Walter  Colton, 
Chaplain  of  the  United  States  Frigate  Congress,  brought  out 
the  first^paper  in  California  on  August^  15,  1846.  It  was  most 
appropriately  called  The  Calif ornian.  In  a  book  which  Colton 
later  published,  he  described  nis  partner  at  the  time  the  paper 
was  brought  out  as  follows:  "He  is  in  buck-skin  dress  and  fox- 
skin  cap;  he  is  true  with  his  rifle,  ready  with  his  pen  and  quick 
at  the  type-case." 

Colton  once  asserted  that  the  materials  in  his  office  had  been 
used  by  a  Roman  Catholic  monk  in  printing  a  few  sectarian 


240       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

tracts;  that  the  press  was  old  enough  to  preserve  as  a  curiosity, 
and  that  the  types  were  all  in  pi  and  were  so  rusty  that  it  was 
only  by  hard  scouring  that  the  letters  could  be  made  to  show 
their  faces.  There  were  no  rules  or  leads,  and  in  their  absence 
two  or  three  sheets  of  tin  were  cut  with  the  help  of  a  jack-knife 
for  substitutes.  Fortunately,  there  was  enough  ink  for  the 
press,  but  unfortunately  no  paper.  A  supply  of  paper  sent  to 
California  to  be  used  to  wrap  cigars  was  purchased  from  a 
coaster,  and  on  these  sheets,  not  much  larger  than  the  common- 
sized  foolscap,  was  printed  the  first  issue  of  The  Californian. 
One  half  of  the  paper  was  in  English,  the  other  in  Spanish,  and 
single  copies  sold  for  twelve  and  one  half  cents  —  considered 
cheap  at  that.  The  first  issue  contained  a  declaration  of  war 
between  the  United  States  and  Mexico  with  an  account  of  a 
debate  in  the  Senate. 

The  Californian  after  six  months  boasted  that  it  had  been  able 
to  meet  expenses,  but  in  spite  of  this  assertion  it  was  forced  to 
move  from  Monterey  to  Yerba  Buena,  —  now  San  Francisco,  — 
~wheFe  on  May  22,  1847,  it  issued  the  first  number  of  its  second 
volume  with  Robert  Semple  as  its  sole  publisher.  Before  this 
change  of  place  of  publication,  another  paper  had  already  been 
started  at  Yerba  Buena  called  The  California  Star,  first  issued 
on  January  7,  1847.  It  was  published  by  Samuel  Brannfln  and 
edited  by  E.  P.  Jones.  It  was  much  better  printed  than  The 
Californian,  and  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  its  press  was  brought 
to  California  by  the  Mormons  it  announced  that  it  would  eschew 
sectarian  discussions  and  confine  itself  strictly  to  the  news. 
The  Star  was  used  extensively  to  boom  California  and  extra 
editions  were  printed  for  circulation  in  other  States. 

The  Star  and  The  Californian  were  merged  on  January  4, 
1849,  into  The  Alta  Califc 


PIONEERS    OF   MINNESOTA 

The  first  newspaper  in  Minnesota  was  announced  in  its 
prospectus  as  The  Epistle  of  St.  Paul  When  the  paper  appeared, 
however,  it  bore  the  name  of  The  Minnesota  Pioneer,  and  was 
published  at  St.  Paul,  April  28,  1849.  It  was  a  four-page,  six- 
column  sheet  for  the  first  few  months,  but  in  October  it  was 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  AND  TERRITORIES    241 

enlarged  to  seven  columns.  Its  editor  and  owner  was  James 
M.  Goodhue,  a  native  of  Hebron,  New  Hampshire.  He  has  been 
aptly  described  as  "the  James  Gordon  Bennett  of  Minnesota." 

The  early  issues  were  printed  under  difficulties.  The  only 
available  printing-office  was  the  basement  of  the  only  public 
house  in  St.  Paul.  The  editor  in  describing  his  early  experiences 
said  that  it  was  as  open  as  a  corn  crib,  and  that  the  pigs  in  seek- 
ing shelter  under  the  floor  frequently  jostled  the  loose  boards  on 
which  rested  the  editorial  chair  of  The  Minnesota  Pioneer. 

Such  editorial  assertions  as,  "He  stole  into  the  Territory;  He 
stole  in  the  Territory,  and  then  stole  out  of  the  Territory,"  got 
Goodhue  into  serious  difficulties  —  difficulties  out  of  which  he 
escaped  only  with  the  help  of  his  fist  and  a  pistol.  Like  James 
Gordon  Bennett,  he  published  full  accounts  in  The  Pioneer. 
An  editorial  tribute  published  in  The  Pioneer  on  September  1, 
1853,  says  of  Goodhue,  "Many  of  his  editorials  would  have  done 
no  discredit  to  The  New  York  Herald  in  its  most  palmy  days." 
Goodhue  died  on  August  27,  1852.  His  successor  was  Joseph  R. 
Brown. 

Other  early  papers  of  Minnesota  may  be  briefly  mentioned. 
The  second  was  The  Minnesota  Chronicle,  first  published  May 
31,  1849,  at  St.  Paul,  with  James  Hughes,  a  former  resident  of 
Ohio,  as  its  editor  and  proprietor.  It  was  a  Whig  paper  of  the 
same  size  of  The  Minnesota  Pioneer.  The  third  paper,  The 
Minnesota  Register,  had  its  first  issue  in  St.  Paul  on  July  14, 
1849,  though  an  earlier  number  had  been  printed  in  Cincinnati, 
Ohio,  dated  Saturday,  April  27,  1849,  and  had  been  sent  by 
steamboat  to  St.  Paul  for  distribution.  A  monthly  missionary 
sheet  was  the  fourth  paper:  printed  half  in  English  and  half  in 
the  Dakota  language,  it  was  called  The  Dakota  Friend.  Goodhue 
made  an  interesting  comment  in  his  paper  on  March  6,  1851, 
when  he  said,  "The  little  press  at  The  Chronicle  office  has  been 
horribly  twisted  and  distorted  by  printing  the  crooked  Sioux 
dialect  of  The  Friend.''1  Colonel  B.  A.  Robertson  brought  out 
the  fifth  paper,  The  Minnesota  Democrat.  In  order  to  give  the 
people  of  the  other  side  a  newspaper,  Elmer  Huyler,  a  tailor 
of  St.  Anthony,  —  now  Minneapolis,  —  issued  on  May  31,  1851 , 
The  St.  Anthony  Express,  the  sixth  newspaper.  Other  papers, 


242       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

arranged  in  the  order  of  their  establishment,  were  The  Minne- 
sotian,  first  published  on  September  17,  1851;  The  North  Western 
Democrat,  first  published  on  July  13,  1853;  The  Minnesota 
Times,  first  published  on  May  15,  1854;  The  Minnesota  Repub- 
lican, first  published  on  October  5,  1854;  The  St.  Paul  Financier 
and  Real  Estate  Advertiser,  first  published  on  November  3,  1854. 
The  papers  just  mentioned  make  the  first  eleven  newspapers 
to  be  published  in  Minnesota.  Of  these,  only  The  Minnesota 
Pioneer  now  survives  and  even  that  paper  has  undergone  so 
many  changes  that  it  now  bears  the  title  of  The  Dispatch  Pioneer 
Press. 

AN  OASIS  OF  JOURNALISM  IN  UTAH 

When  the  Mormons  were  expelled  from  Nauvoo  in  1846, 
they  gathered  on  the  banks  of  the  Missouri  River  near  a  point 
where  Council  Bluffs  now  stands.  From  here  various  bands 
were  dispatched  to  the  Rocky  Mountains;  one  of  the  earliest  of 
these  to  leave  had  a  wagon  loaded  with  an  old  Ramage  press,  a 
supply  of  paper,  and  a  few  fonts  of  type.  This  outfit  was  hauled 
across  the  plains  from  the  Missouri  River  to  the  Salt  Lake  Valley, 
a  distance  of  over  one  thousand  miles,  by  team.  Upon  its  ar- 
rival at  Salt  Lake  City,  preparations  were  made  for  printing  The 
Deseret  News,  to  be  the  official  organ  of  the  Church  of  Jesus 
Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints  —  familiarly  known  as  the  Mormon 
Church. 

Brigham  Young  appointed  William  Richards  as  editor,  Horace 
K.  Whitney  as  typesetter,  and  his  nephew,  Brigham  H.  Young, 
as  pressman.  The  first  number  appeared  on  June  15,  1850. 
Its  motto  was,  "  Truth  and  Liberty,"  and  its  price,  fifteen  cents 
per  copy.  Travelers  and  immigrants  were  charged  twenty-five 
cents  per  copy,  but  this  amount  included  the  notice  of  their 
names,  place  of  residence,  and  time  of  arrival  and  leaving.  The 
setting-up  of  a  newspaper  plant  in  the  wilds  of  the  Rockies,  nearly 
a  thousand  miles  from  civilization,  before  Denver,  Omaha,  or 
Kansas  City  was  on  the  map,  and  when  San  Francisco  was 
only  a  cluster  of  Mexican  shanties,  may  be  taken  as  a  splendid 
illustration  of  that  spirit  which  animated  the  early  Mormon 
pioneers. 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  AND  TERRITORIES     243 

Naturally,  grave  difficulties  were  encountered  in  publishing  a 
paper  under  the  conditions  just  outlined.  Currency  was  scarce, 
but  The  News  accepted  "flour,  wheat,  corn  meal,  butter,  tea, 
tallow,  and  pork"  in  exchange  for  subscriptions.  For  years  it 
made  its  own  supply  of  paper  from  rags  gathered  in  the  early 
settlements  of  Utah.  Most  of  its  foreign  news  was  obtained 
from  Eastern  papers  brought  by  chance  visitors  on  their  way  to 
the  California  gold  fields.  Not  infrequently  it  apologized  for 
absence  of  such  items  with  a  note  like  the  following:  "From  all 
the  immigrants  we  were  not  able  to  obtain  one  whole  paper: 
they  were  all  wet,  damaged  or  destroyed  on  the  way."  In  local 
news  it  was  more  fortunate,  for  at  the  same  time  that  Brigham 
Young  established  The  News  he  founded  a  university,  a  theatri- 
cal association,  and  an  instrumental  and  vocal  society  which 
flourished  and  spread  and  from  which  grew  the  University  of 
Utah,  the  famous  Salt  Lake  Theater,  and  the  noted  Tabernacle 
Choir  of  the  present  time.  The  doings  of  these  enterprises  filled 
many  a  column  of  The  News. 

The  News  has  been  continually  printed  at  Salt  Lake  City, 
except  during  "The  Utah  War"  of  1857-58  when  the  Governor 
sent  an  expedition  to  that  Territory  to  quell  the  so-called 
"Mormon  Insurrection."  The  Mormons  moved  a  second  time 
before  the  advance  of  the  army,  but  they  always  took  their 
newspaper  plant  with  them.  The  press  was  installed  in  a  special 
wagon  and  wherever  the  company  camped  there  appeared  The 
News.  Its  longest  temporary  stop  was  at  Fillmore  City,  where 
the  first  issue  dated  at  that  place  appeared  on  May  5, 1858.  The 
News  was  printed  as  a  weekly  and  later  as  a  semi-weekly  until 
1867,  when  it  came  out  daily.  The  News  to-day  presents  a  strik- 
ing contrast  to  the  little  pamphlet  sheet  issued  in  1850. 

The  Daily  Telegraph  was  started  in  Salt  Lake  City  on  July  4, 
1864.  Five  years  later  it  was  moved  to  Ogden,  but  was  discon- 
tinued the  same  year  (1869). 

When  the  Pony  Express  reached  Salt  Lake  City,  journalism 
took  a  jump.  The  Mountaineer  of  that  city  on  February  2, 1861, 
said:  "We  are  favored  by  the  Pony  Club  of  this  city  with  a 
copy  of  their  telegraphic  dispatches  bringing  dates  from  New 
York  and  Washington  up  to  the  22nd  ult." 


244       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

A  curiosity  in  Utah  journalism  was  The  Manti  Herald,  started 
on  January  31,  1867,  at  Manti,  Utah,  by  F.  C.  Robinson.  This 
paper  was  printed  entirely  by  hand  and  with  pen  and  ink. 

WHIG   PAPEES   OF  WASHINGTON 

The  old-fashioned  Ramage  press,  which  had  been  used  to  print 
the  first  number  of  The  Oregonian  in  Oregon  and  several  early 
papers  of  the  Pacific  Coast,  was  the  press  on  which  was  " pulled" 
the  first  newspaper  in  Washington  —  The  Columbian.  This 
paper  appeared  on  September  11,  1852,  at  Olympia,  and  was 
edited  and  owned  by  J.  W.  Wiley  and  Thornton  F.  McElroy. 
In  March  of  1853,  Wiley  retired,  but  he  again  appeared  as  its 
editor  on  December  3.  From  the  start  Wiley  advocated  a  separa- 
tion from  Oregon.  Through  the  columns  of  his  paper  he  arranged 
a  meeting  of  the  more  prominent  settlers  to  arrange  for  the  or- 
ganization of  Washington  as  a  territory.  (See  Oregon  papers.) 

The  Columbian  later  became  The  Washington  Pioneer,  and 
with  this  change  was  made  over  into  a  radical  Democratic 
journal.  Because  of  its  new  political  affiliation  it  became  in 
February,  1854,  The  Pioneer  and  Democrat.  It  suspended  in 
1861. 

The  second  paper,  a  Whig  sheet,  was  started  at  Steilacoom 
on  May  19,  1855,  by  William  B.  Affleck  and  E.  T.  Gunn.  Called 
The  Puget  Sound  Courier,  it  lasted  about  a  year,  but  was  revived 
however,  in  January,  1871,  at  Olympia  where  it  became  a  daily 
in  January,  1872.  About  two  years  later,  December,  1874,  the 
paper  suspended  for  lack  of  support,  but  was  revived  again 
as  The  Daily  Courier  early  in  1877. 

These  pioneer  sheets  of  Washington  frequently  retailed  at 
fabulous  prices  —  especially  when  they  contained  information 
about  the  discovery  of  gold  in  new  fields.  Occasionally  copies 
of  The  Washington  Pioneer  or  The  Puget  Sound  Courier  sold  in 
San  Francisco  at  five  to  ten  dollars  a  copy.  Sometimes  the 
demand  for  papers  was  so  great  that  their  printers  reproduced 
items  about  the  discovery  of  gold  on  thin  strips  of  paper:  these 
news-strips  brought  just  as  high  prices  as  complete  copies  of 
the  paper. 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  AND  TERRITORIES     245 

EARLY   NEWSPAPERS   OF   NEBRASKA 

The  first  five  papers  in  Nebraska  were  printed  in  Iowa.  The 
first  of  these,  and  incidentally,  the  first  printed  in  Nebraska, 
was  The  Nebraska  Palladium.  Number  1  was  dated  July  15, 
1854,  and  was  printed  at  St.  Mary's,  a  hamlet  just  below  Belle- 
vue  on  the  Iowa  shore  of  the  Missouri  River.  The  first  number 
to  be  printed  in  Nebraska  was  that  of  November  15,  1854.  For 
the  privilege  of  turning  off  the  first  number,  E.  N.  Upjohn  gave 
one  dollar.  From  that  date  on  until  April  11,  1855,  it  was  a  dis- 
tinctly Nebraska-made  publication.  While  Thomas  Morton  was 
its  publisher,  Daniel  Reed  &  Company  were  set  down  as  edi- 
tors and  proprietors. 

The  second  paper  in  Nebraska  was  The  Omaha  Arrow,  dated 
at  Nebraska  City,  but  printed  at  Council  Bluffs,  Iowa.  It  first 
appeared  July  28,  1854,  and  was  discontinued  December  29  of 
that  year.  Its  publishers  were  J.  W.  Pattison  and  J.  E.  John- 
son. The  former  of  these  is  credited  with  the  honor  of  being  the 
editor,  and  doubtless  was  the  author  of  the  following  intro- 
ductory remark  in  the  first  issue  of  the  paper:  "Well,  strangers, 
friends,  patrons,  and  the  good  people  generally,  wherever  in  the 
wide  world  your  lot  may  be  cast,  and  in  whatever  clime  this 
Arrow  may  reach  you,  here  we  are,  upon  Nebraska  soil.  Seated 
upon  the  stump  of  an  ancient  oak,  which  serves  for  the  editorial 
chair,  and  the  top  of  our  badly  abused  beaver  for  a  table,  we  pur- 
pose inditing  a  leader  for  The  Omaha  Arrow." 

In  spite  of  the  fact  that  The  Arrow  was  never  printed  in 
Nebraska,  it  attracted  much  attention  from  a  contemporary 
press.  In  its  eleventh  issue  it  published  five  columns  of  notes 
about  itself  clipped  from  other  newspapers. 

On  May  5,  1858,  The  Nebraska  Republican,  dated  at  Omaha, 
but  printed  at  Council  Bluffs,  Iowa,  appeared  with  E.  F.  Shneider 
and  H.  J.  Brown  as  editors  and  publishers.  In  1859  its  name  was 
changed  to  The  Omaha  Republican  and  E.  D.  Webster  became  its 
editor.  The  Nebraska  News  was  originally  printed  in  Sydney, 
Iowa,  by  Dr.  Henry  Bradford,  but  on  November  14, 1854,  it  was 
removed  to  Nebraska  City  and  published  in  the  second  story 
of  the  Block  House  of  old  Port  Kearny.  It  was  owned  by  the 


246       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Nebraska  City  Town  Site  Company.  Its  editor  was  J.  S. 
Morton,  who  had  formerly  been  connected  with  The  Detroit 
Free  Press. 

The  Omaha  Nebraskan  first  appeared  on  January  17, 1855,  and 
was  the  first  newspaper  printed  at  Omaha.  It  was  established 
by  B.  B.  Chapman.  The  last  issue  was  on  June  15,  1865.  The 
first  regular  daily  was  The  Telegraph,  which  appeared  on  Decem- 
ber 5,  1860,  published  simultaneously  at  Omaha  and  Council 
Bluffs.  Its  life  was  short,  however;  it  did  not  last  more  than  a 
year.  On  June  19,  1871,  Edward  Rosewater  started  The  Bee 
at  Omaha,  Nebraska.  The  Herald  had  been  begun  in  Omaha, 
October  2,  1865:  it  was  purchased  in  1888  by  Gilbert  M. 
Hitchcock. 

DflBUT  IN  SOUTH  DAKOTA 

The  first  newspaper  published  within  the  present  boundaries 
of  South  Dakota  was  The  Dakota  Democrat,  founded  at  Sioux 
Falls  City,  now  Sioux  Falls,  September  20,  1858.  Its  owner  and 
publisher  was  Samuel  J.  Albright.  He  published  the  paper, 
which  was  a  four-page  sheet  with  five  columns  to  the  page, 
rather  irregularly  until  July  2,  1859.  After  that  date  he  rarely 
skipped  an  issue  until  the  autumn  of  1860,  when  he  turned 
the  paper  over  to  Mr.  Stewart,  who  changed  its  name  to  The 
Northwestern  Democrat.  The  reason  for  this  change  was  that 
Albright  took  with  him  the  original  heading  of  the  paper  —  The 
Democrat  —  and  the  new  owner  was  forced  to  use  one  which  had 
been  previously  employed  in  printing  a  paper  at  Sergeant  Bluffs, 
Iowa.  When  the  Indian  war  broke  out  in  1862,  the  settlement 
of  Sioux  Falls  was  abandoned.  In  sacking  the  town  the  Indians 
destroyed  the  printing-plant,  but  carried  away  most  of  the  type. 
After  peace  was  declared  the  type  came  back  again  to  the  whites 
in  the  shape  of  ornaments  used  to  decorate  the  pipes  which  the 
Indians  fashioned  out  of  the  red  pipe  stone  and  sold  to  the  set- 
tlers. The  Dakota  Democrat  was  "the  official  organ"  of  the  Leg- 
islature which  first  convened  at  Sioux  Falls,  1858-59. 

The  second  paper,  The  Weekly  Dakotaian,  the  oldest  contin- 
uous newspaper  in  South  Dakota,  was  established  in  Yank  ton, 
June  6,  1861,  by  Frank  M.  Ziebach.  In  March,  1862,  it  was  sold 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES   AND  TERRITORIES    247 

to  J.  C.  Trask,  the  first  Public  Printer.  The  daily  edition  was 
started  April  26,  1875.  William  Kiter  started  The  Pantegraph 
at  Sioux  Falls  in  February,  1872.  This  newspaper  was  printed  on 
the  cooperative  plan  and  was  published  at  irregular  intervals 
until  October,  when  it  went  into  "winter  headquarters."  It 
was  revived  in  April,  1873,  and  was  again  published  with  oc- 
casional interruptions  until  the  spring  of  1877  when  the  plant 
was  closed  by  an  order  of  the  court.  Later,  the  material  of  the 
plant  was  used  in  starting  The  Roscoe  Express.  Of  the  other 
early  editors  of  The  Pantegraph,  mention  may  be  made  of  F.  D. 
Cowles,  F.  E.  Everett,  and  W.  S.  Guild. 

Another  paper  in  Sioux  Falls  was  The  Independent,  which  was 
first  issued  on  May  15,  1875,  by  Charles  W.  McDonald;  on 
January  6,  1881,  it  was  merged  with  The  Dakota  Pantegraph. 
Among  those  who  edited  the  newspaper  before  this  merger  were 
E.  A.  Sherman,  F.  E.  Everett,  W.  A.  Williams,  and  L.  C. 
Hitchcock.  The  Dakota  Pantegraph  was  started  in  Sioux  Falls 
in  the  spring  of  1877  by  G.  M.  Smith  and  M.  Grigsby.  The  press 
and  type  used  to  bring  out  this  paper  had  been  formerly  em- 
ployed to*get  out  The  Era  at  Swan  Lake.  Grigsby  continued  as 
editor  until  April,  1878,  when  The  Pantegraph  was  sold  to  Cald- 
well  &  Stahl. 

Other  early  papers  in  South  Dakota  were  The  Dakota  Union, 
established  at  Yankton,  June  21,  1864,  by  George  W.  Kings- j 
bury;  The  Press,  at  Yankton,  August  10,  1870,  by  George  H. 
Hand;  The  Dell  City  Journal,  established  in  1871,  was  an  inter- 
esting innovation  in  the  journalism  of  South  Dakota  in  that 
this  newspaper  was  printed  at  Webster  City,  Iowa,  but  was  is- 
sued at  Dell  Rapids,  South  Dakota,  by  J.  C.  Ervin;  The  Advocate, 
at  Canton,  April  26,  1876,  by  Skinner  &  Tallman;  The  Times, 
at  Sioux  Falls,  November  15,  1878,  by  E.  O.  Kimberly  and 
C.  M.  Morse;  The  Exponent,  at  Dell  Rapids,  February,  1879,  by 

E.  C.  Whalen;  The  Centinel,  at  Madison,  April,  1879,  by  J.  H. 
Zane  and  F.  L.  Fifeld;  The  Leader,  at  Herman,  June,  1879,  by 

F.  C.  Stowe;  The  Beadle  County  Sentinel,  at  Huron,  March  17, 
1880,  by  John  Cain. 


248       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

WKITTEN   NEWSPAPERS   OF   NEVADA 

Among  the  prospectors  who  hastened  to  Nevada  after  the 
discovery  of  gold  and  silver  in  that  region  was  Joseph  Webb. 
He  was  nob  successful  prospecting  and  settled  for  a  while  at  the 
Carson  River  Crossing  where  Dayton  now  stands.  Gold  had 
been  found  there  in  some  quantities  and  then  it  became  a  sta- 
tion for  immigrants  along  the  trail  on  their  way  to  California. 
Webb  gathered  up  the  gossip  of  the  trail,  supplemented  by  what 
news  was  told  him  by  passersby,  and  then  with  pen  and  ink 
made  a  written  newspaper  which  he  sold  to  travelers,  who  paid 
for  it  with  gold  dust  taken  from  Carson  River  with  milk-pans 
and  wash-basins.  He  called  his  written  newspaper  The  Golden 
Switch.  Unfortunately,  but  few  copies  of  this  written  newspaper 
have  survived.  It  was  started  some  time  in  1854  and  lasted  not 
later  than  1858.  At  about  the  same  time  that  Webb  was  get- 
ting out  his  sheet,  Stephen  A.  Kensey  was  issuing  a  rival  written 
newspaper  called  The  Scorpion  in  the  little  village  of  Genoa  at 
the  eastern  foot  of  the  Sierra  Nevada  Mountains.  $ 

The  first  printed  newspaper,  however,  in  Nevada  was  The 
Territorial  Enterprise,  issued  November  18,  1858,  at  Genoa  by 
Alfred  Jones  and  W.  L.  Jernegan.  On  November  5,  1859,  it 
was  purchased  by  Jonathan  Williams  and  J.  B.  Woolard,  who 
took  the  paper  to  Carson  City,  the  Capital  of  the  Territory,  and 
where  later  it  was  purchased  by  Joseph  T.  Goodman  and  Dennis 
E.  McCarthy  and  again  moved  to  Virginia  City,  where  it  be- 
came the  mouthpiece  for  the  mines  of  that  place.  Its  fortune 
fared  in  direct  ratio  to  the  prosperity  of  the  mining  camps  in  that 
vicinity.  The  Enterprise  lasted  until  May  30,  1916,  when  it  was 
merged  with  The  Virginia  City  Chronicle. 

The  Enterprise  is  best  remembered  as  the  paper  on  which  Mark 
Twain  worked.  In  response  to  a  request  to  attend  a  reunion 
at  Virginia  City,  Mr.  Clemens  wrote:  " Those  were  the  days  — 
those  old  ones.  They  will  come  no  more.  Youth  will  come  no 
more.  They  were  full  to  the  brim  with  the  wine  of  life.  There 
have  been  no  others  like  them.  But  I  cannot  come  out.  Would 
you  like  me  to  come  out  and  cry?  It  would  not  become  my  white 
head.  Good-bye.  I  drink  to  you  all.  Have  a  good  time,  take  an 
old  man's  blessing." 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  AND  TERRITORIES     249 

After  The  Territorial  Enterprise  was  moved  from  Carson  City 
to  Virginia  City  its  place  was  almost  immediately  taken  by  The 
Silver  Age.  The  new  venture  was  successful  almost  from  the 
start  because  it  was  favored  by  the  Legislature  in  the  matter  of 
public  printing. 

The  third  paper  in  Carson  City  was  started  by  W.  W.  Ross 
on  July  27,  1863.  It  was  called  The  Daily  Independent  and  ex- 
pired on  October  11,  1864. 

H.  W.  Johnson  &  Company  had  started  The  Daily  Evening 
Post  of  Carson  City  on  August  27,  1864.  Its  appearance  had 
undoubtedly  something  to  do  with  the  death  of  The  Daily  In- 
dependent, because  when  the  latter  paper  suspended  publication 
The  Evening  Post  became  a  morning  paper.  In  January,  1865, 
it,  too,  suspended  publication.  The  following  December  John 
C.  Lewis,  who  had  been  editor  of  the  morning  edition  of  The 
Post,  took  the  plant  to  Wasshoe  City,  where  he  started  The 
Eastern  Slope.  Unsuccessful  here,  he  moved  the  plant  to  Reno 
in  July,  1868,  where  he  printed  The  Crescent  until  1875.  He  then 
sold  the  paper  to  J.  C.  Dow,  who  commenced  The  Daily  Nevada 
Democrat,  which  later  became  The  Reno  Daily  Record. 

ARRIVAL   IN   ARIZONA 

The  first  paper  in  Arizona,  The  Weekly  Arizonian,  was  started 
at  Tubac  by  Sylvester  Moury  in  all  probability  on  or  near  March 
3,  1859.  Number  20  of  Volume  I,  the  earliest  known  issue  of  this 
paper,  was  dated  July  14  of  that  year.  The  press  on  which  the 
paper  was  printed  came  around  the  Horn  in  1858  and  was  brought 
from  Guaymas  to  Tubac  by  wagon.  In  1860  the  paper  was  re- 
moved to  Tucson  where  it  was  published  by  Jack  Simms  and 
George  Smithson.  It  suspended  publication  in  1861.  In  adver- 
tising the  sale  of  its  plant,  it  included  among  the  office  equip- 
ment two  derringers.  This  mention,  brief  as  it  is,  showed  a 
necessary  adjunct,  along  with  "shooting-irons,"  in  the  office  of 
many  of  the  Western  papers.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  one  reason  for 
the  suspension  of  the  paper  was  the  fact  that  its  publishers  were 
charged  with  a  stage  robbery  and  in  resisting  arrest  one  of  them 
was  killed. 

In  1867  the  paper  was  revived  under  its  old  name  by  W.  S. 


250       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Moury.  Out  of  this  paper  grew  the  present  Citizen  of  Tucson. 
Incidentally,  it  may  be  remarked  that  in  the  fall  of  1879  the  old 
press  was  taken  to  Tombstone,  where  it  was  used  to  print  The 
Nugget,  the  first  paper  in  that  camp. 

The  second  paper  in  Arizona  was  called  The  Miner  and  was 
started  in  Prescott  on  March  9,  1864,  by  John  H.  Marion.  In- 
terested in  the  enterprise  was  R.  C.  McCormick,  the  secretary 
of  the  Territory  for  that  year.  Beginning  in  1866,  Marion  pub- 
lished The  Daily  Arizona  Miner  during  the  session  of  the  Legis- 
lature. 

The  third  paper  was  The  Sentinel,  started  in  Yuma  in  1870. 

Among  the  most  interesting  of  the  early  Arizona  papers  was 
The  Epitaph,  started  on  May  1, 1880,  at  Tombstone.  Its  founders 
were  John  P.  Clum,  the  mayor  and  also  the  postmaster  at 
Tucson,  Charles  D.  Reppy,  and  Thomas  Sorin.  The  name  of  the 
paper  was  suggested  by  John  Hayes  Hammond,  who  later  be- 
came distinguished  as  one  of  the  foremost  mining  engineers. 
He  was  dining,  with  the  gentlemen  who  were  about  to  start  the 
paper,  at  the  Can  Can  Restaurant.  When  he  asked  what  the 
name  was  to  be  he  was  informed  that  no  title  had  as  yet  been 
selected.  Hammond,  recalling  a  rather  exciting  adventure  which 
had  recently  happened,  suggested  that  in  view  of  the  character 
of  the  news  the  paper  would  probably  print,  there  could  be  no 
more  fitting  title  than  The  Epitaph.  The  title  was  thought 
very  appropriate  and  was  promptly  adopted. 

When  The  Epitaph  was  founded  there  were  but  six  counties 
in  the  Territory  of  Arizona  and  but  ten  newspapers  printed  in 
the  English  language.  These  included  The  Nugget  at  Tombstone, 
The  Record,  The  Citizen,  and  The  Star  at  Tucson,  The  Silver 
Belt  at  Globe,  The  Salt  River  Herald  and  Territorial  Expositor  at 
Phcenix,  The  Enterprise  and  The  Miner  at  Prescott,  and  The 
Sentinel  at  Yuma. 

ROCKY  MOUNTAIN   PAPERS   OF   COLORADO 

In  Denver  The  Rocky  Mountain  News  has  the  distinction  of 
being  the  oldest  paper  in  Colorado.  Its  first  issue  was  April  23, 
1859,  in  a  struggling,  home-seekers'  settlement  which  had  not 
yet  a  definite  name.  The  discovery  of  placer  gold  some  months 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  AND  TERRITORIES    251 

earlier  had  made  a  settlement  at  the  junction  of  the  Platte  River 
and  Cherry  Creek.  On  each  bank  of  the  river  there  was  a  rival 
town  site,  so  that  William  N.  Byers  very  wisely  dated  his  paper 
as  published  at  Cherry  Creek,  Denver  Territory.  The  first  issue 
of  The  Rocky  Mountain  News  was  printed  on  brown  wrapping- 
paper.  At  the  start  it  was  published  weekly,  but  later  it  became 
a  daily.  It  has  been  published  uninterrupted  since  its  establish- 
ment, with  a  single  exception  in  the  early  sixties  when  a  flood 
in  Cherry  Creek  wiped  its  plant  out  of  existence. 

The  day  The  Rocky  Mountain  News  started  was  one  of  the  most 
exciting  in  frontier  journalism.  When  the  news  of  the  discovery 
of  gold  in  the  " Pike's  Peak  Region"  had  reached  as  far  east  as 
the  Missouri,  it  promptly  started  two  small  newspaper  plants 
which  had  for  their  motto,  figuratively  speaking,  "  A  newspaper 
near  Pike's  Peak,  or  bust."  One  left  Omaha  and  was  owned  by 
William  N.  Byers,  Thomas  Gibson,  and  John  L.  Bailey;  the  other 
set  out  from  St.  Joseph,  Missouri,  and  consisted  of  the  outfit 
which  John  L.  Merrick  had  purchased  from  The  St.  Joseph 
Gazette.  Both  outfits  had  to  cross  the  plains  by  ox  teams. 

Merrick  was  the  first  to  arrive.  Not  knowing  that  competi- 
tors were  on  the  way,  he  leisurely  commenced  preparing  for 
the  first  issue  of  The  Cherry  Creek  Pioneer.  Ten  days  later  the 
Omaha  plant  arrived  and  the  competition  for  the  honor  of  the 
first  paper  in  Colorado  began.  The  settlement  offered  a  suitable 
prize  to  the  winner  and  appointed  a  committee  of  citizens  to 
referee  the  contest.  Both  The  Rocky  Mountain  News  and  The 
Cherry  Creek  Pioneer  announced  their  date  of  first  publication 
April  23,  1859.  At  ten-thirty  o'clock,  on  the  evening  of  April  23, 
the  first  copy  of  The  News,  a  four-page  sheet,  was  pulled  from 
the  old  Washington  hand-press.  Other  copies  soon  circulated 
among  the  pioneers  surrounding  the  log  cabin  print-shop.  A 
little  later  The  Pioneer  also  appeared  on  the  streets.  The  decis- 
ion of  the  committee,  however,  was  that  The  News  had  won 
by  twenty  minutes. 

Worn  out  by  his  efforts  and  depressed  by  defeat,  Merrick  the 
next  morning  offered  to  sell  his  plant  to  his  rival  upon  terms 
which  were  later  accepted.  Merrick  then  set  off  for  the  moun- 
tains, not  to  hunt  for  news,  but  for  gold. 


252       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

As  the  pioneer  settlement  grew  into  a  larger  town,  The 
News  always  led  in  a  movement  for  law  and  regulation.  In  his 
attempts  to  clear  the  town  of  its  rougher  element,  Editor 
Byers  often  wrote  his  editorials  and  news  with  a  rifle  across  his 
knee  while  armed  men  guarded  his  printers.  For  nineteen  years 
Byers  conducted  The  News. 

Under  difficulties  seldom  equaled,  and  never  surpassed,  he 
brought  out  his  paper.  When  the  Indian  outbreak  caused  an 
embargo  on  traffic  over  the  Western  plains  in  1864-65,  he  fre- 
quently ran  out  of  white  paper,  and  in  such  emergencies  he 
printed  the  news  on  wrapping-paper,  gathered  from  Denver 
stores.  That  he  might  have  the  news  before  the  mails  from  the 
East  arrived  in  Denver,  he  established  an  overland  pony  express. 
By  means  of  a  relay  of  horseback  riders  he  had  brought  the  news 
from  the  nearest  express  lines  with  a  speed  which  to-day  almost 
seems  incredible.  Of  course,  it  was  expensive  to  run  such  a  private 
pony  express,  but  The  News  in  those  days  cost  forty-four  dollars 
a  year  and  single  copies  sold  for  one  dollar  and  twenty-five 
cents  apiece.  In  1878  the  paper  was  sold  to  the  Rocky  Mountain 
News  Printing  Company,  with  W.  A.  H.  Laughlin  as  editor  and 
principal  owner. 

Two  papers  were  established  in  Denver  in  1867:  the  first  of 
these  was  The  Daily  Argus,  begun  on  October  25;  the  second, 
The  Rocky  Mountain  Star,  begun  on  December  8.  A  third  at- 
tempt was  made  by  N.  A.  Baker,  who,  after  bringing  out  a  few 
issues  of  The  Colorado  Leader,  left  Denver,  to  go  to  Cheyenne, 
where  he  founded  the  first  paper  in  Wyoming. 

INFANCY   OF   IDAHO   JOURNALISM 

While  there  was  a  paper  called  The  Golden  Age,  published  at 
Lewiston,  by  Frank  Kenyon  in  1862,  the  first  paper  to  be  pub- 
lished in  Idaho  after  the  Territory  was  created  on  March  3, 1863, 
was  The  Boise  News,  started  on  September  30,  1863,  at  Bannock 
City  —  now  called  Idaho  City.  It  was  published  by  T.  J.  and 
J.  S.  Butler.  J.  S.  Butler  had  left  Auburn,  Oregon,  in  the  fall  of 
1862  to  look  after  a  band  of  cattle  in  the  Powder  River  Valley. 
Later,  he  organized  a  pack-train  to  take  goods  to  Walla  Walla, 
Washington,  and  still  later  he  ran  a  pack-train  to  Bannock 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  AND  TERRITORIES     253 

(now  Idaho  City),  Idaho.  At  Walla  Walla  he  met  Major  Reese, 
of  The  Walla  Walla  Watchman,  who  had  just  bought  out  a  rival 
newspaper.  The  sale  gave  Butler  an  idea:  realizing  that  a  great 
many  people  were  gathering  in  the  Boise  Basin,  nearly  three 
hundred  miles  from  any  newspaper,  and  that  a  great  political 
campaign  was  approaching,  he  conceived  the  idea  of  starting  a 
newspaper  there.  Purchasing  the  extra  outfit  from  Major  Reese, 
he  sold  his  packing  business  and  sent  for  his  family  and  also  his 
brother,  T.  S.  Butler,  who  became  the  editor  of  the  new  paper. 
The  outfit  sold  to  Butler  was  far  from  being  complete.  He  found 
it  necessary  to  make  composing-sticks  from  the  tin  of  an  old 
tobacco  box:  he  improvised  an  imposing-stone  by  using  a  large 
slab  split  from  a  pine  log,  which  he  dressed  off  on  one  side, 
mounted  on  a  frame,  and  covered  with  sheet  iron:  he  chiseled 
a  chase  out  of  old  horseshoe  iron.  In  spite  of  such  handicaps, 
however,  The  Boise  News  was  a  fairly  creditable  production.  It 
was  continued  by  the  Butler  brothers  for  about  thirteen  months, 
and  often  sold  for  two  dollars  and  fifty  cents  a  copy. 

In  addition  to  getting  out  The  Boise  News,  the  plant  printed 
a  campaign  paper  for  each  of  the  political  parties.  On  October 
29,  1864,  the  paper  was  sold  to  Street  &  Bowman,  who  changed 
the  name  of  the  paper  to  The  Idaho  World.  Before  The  Boise 
News  was  started,  Portland  papers  were  sold  extensively  in 
Idaho  by  rival  express  companies. 

The  second  paper  in  Idaho  was  The  Union,  edited  by  John 
Charleton,  first  issued  in  Idaho  City  October  8,  1863. 

The  third  paper  was  The  Idaho  Daily  Statesman,  established  on 
July  26,  1864,  by  James  S.  Reynolds  and  his  brothers,  T.  S. 
and  S.  W.  Reynolds.  It  has  been  run  continuously  ever  since 
under  that  title. 

BEGINNINGS   IN   MONTANA 

Journalism  in  Montana  began  in  the  cellar  of  a  log  cabin  at 
Virginia  City  on  August  27, 1864,  when  John  Buchanan  brought 
out  The  Montana  Post.  He  had  brought  a  press  and  material 
from  St.  Louis  to  Fort  Benton,  only  to  locate,  however,  at  Virginia 
City.  After  two  issues  of  The  Post  he  sold  the  paper  to  D.  W. 
Tilton  and  Benjamin  R.  Dittes.  The  latter  having  secured 


254       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

complete  control  of  the  paper,  took  it  to  Helena,  where  in  May, 
1868,  he  again  resumed  publication.  The  reason  for  the  change 
was  that  Virgina  City  was  a  placer  camp,  and  after  its  mineral 
beds  were  exhausted  the  miners  left  the  city  and  there  was  no 
longer  need  of  a  newspaper.  On  April  23, 1869,  Helena  was  swept 
by  fire,  and  from  that  time  until  June  11  of  the  same  year  The 
Post  continued  to  appear,  but  was  unable  to  make  any  collec- 
tions either  for  subscriptions  or  advertisements  on  account  of 
the  paralysis  of  business.  On  the  date  last  mentioned  The  Post 
was  compelled  to  suspend  publication. 

The  second  paper  was  The  Montana  Democrat,  established  in 
1865  at  Virginia  City  by  John  P.  Bruce.  In  1857  Kirk  Anderson, 
reporter  and  correspondent  for  The  Missouri  Republican,  had 
established  a  "Gentile"  newspaper  in  Salt  Lake  City.  After 
running  the  sheet  for  about  a  year  and  a  half  he  returned  to 
St.  Louis  after  he  had  sold  his  printing-plant  to  Bruce.  With  this 
material  Bruce  started  The  Democrat,  which  became  a  daily  in 
1868.  In  1865  T.  J.  Favorite,  having  removed  the  worn-out  type 
and  hand-press  of  The  Radiator  from  Lewiston,  Idaho,  started 
in  Helena  The  Montana  Radiator  on  December  17,  1865,  with 
Bruce  Smith  as  editor.  The  Radiator  continued  until  Novem- 
ber 15,  1866,  when  it  was  bought  by  The  Helena  Herald,  the 
third  paper  in  Montana.  That  paper  continued  publication 
until  December  27,  1902,  when  it  became  The  Montana  Daily 
Record.  The  Rocky  Mountain  Gazette  was  first  issued  on  August 
11,  1866.  It  was  destroyed  in  the  conflagration  of  1874  and  did 
not  resume  publication. 

The  Independent,  which  had  been  published  originally  in  Deer 
Lodge,  secured  John  H.  Rogers  as  editor  and  then  moved  to 
Helena,  where  it  is  still  published. 

COMMENCEMENT   IN  WYOMING 

Wyoming  Territory,  organized  in  May,  1869,  was  composed  of 
land  from  three  other  territories,  namely,  Idaho,  Utah,  and 
Dakota.  The  first  newspaper  published  in  the  boundaries  of 
Wyoming  was  The  Cheyenne  Leader.  It  first  appeared  Septem- 
ber 19,  1867,  with  N.  A.  Baker  as  editor  and  proprietor,  from  a 
primitive  printing-office  on  the  east  side  of  Eddy  Street.  In 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  AND  TERRITORIES     255 

truly  primitive  style  Baker  thus  reported  a  wedding  in  the 
winter  of  1867-68.  "  On  the  east  half  of  the  northwest  quarter  of 
section  twenty-two  (22),  township  twenty-one  (21),  north  of 
range  eleven  (11),  in  an  open  sleigh,  and  under  an  open  and  un- 
clouded canopy,  by  the  Rev.  J.  F.  Mason,  James  B.,  only  son 
of  John  Cox  of  Colorado,  and  Ellen  C.,  eldest  daughter  of  Major 
0.  Harrington  of  Nebraska."  Published  tri-weekly,  The  Leader 
sold  for  twelve  dollars  a  year,  or  fifteen  cents  a  copy.  Before 
coming  to  Cheyenne,  Mr.  Baker  had  made  an  unsuccessful 
attempt  to  establish  The  Colorado  Leader  at  Denver  in  July, 
1867. 

In  the  spring  of  1868  A.  E.  Slack  started  another  Wyoming 
paper  at  South  Pass  under  the  name  of  The  South  Pass  News, 
and  in  the  fall  of  1869  S.  A.  Bristol  started  The  Wyoming  Weekly 
Tribune  at  Cheyenne.  The  latter  had  a  precarious  life  and  only 
survived  about  five  years. 

In  Laramie  A.  E.  Slack  brought  out  Volume  I,  Number  1, 
of  The  Independent  on  December  26,  1871.  It  continued  publi- 
cation in  that  city  until  March,  1876,  when  Mr.  Slack  moved 
his  plant  to  Cheyenne  and  consolidated  with  The  Daily  News 
of  that  city  under  the  name  of  The  Cheyenne  Sun.  (The  Cheyenne 
News  had  been  started  in  1874.)  Later,  The  Sun  united  with 
The  Leader  and  the  union  was  known  as  The  Sun-Leader.  As 
time  went  on,  The  Sun  set  and  left  only  The  Leader.  The  paper 
is  still  published  as  The  Leader  at  Cheyenne. 

Two  Wyoming  papers  of  unusual  importance  must  be  no- 
ticed. The  first  was  The  Boomerang  at  Laramie,  started  on 
March  17,  1880,  by  Edgar  Wilson  Nye,  and  Bill  Barrow's 
Budget  at  Douglas  in  1886,  by  W.  C.  Barrow. 

END   OF  BEGINNINGS 

Colonel  Clement  A.  Lounsberry  was  the  founder  of  journalism 
in  North  Dakota,  the  last  of  the  States  and  Territories  to  have 
a  newspaper.  On  July  6,  1873,  he  established  The  Bismarck 
Tribune.  His  first  issue  was  remarkable  in  that  it  contained 
an  advertisement  of  every  business  establishment  in  Bismarck. 
In  the  fall  of  that  year  it  was  forced  for  a  short  time  to  print 
on  wall-paper  on  account  of  a  snow  blockade.  For  the  same 


256       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

reason  the  following  winter  the  size  was  reduced  from  a  seven  to 
a  four  column  sheet.  The  Bismarck  Tribune  had  the  usual  ex- 
periences of  frontier  journalism,  in  that  numerous  gun  and  re- 
volver shots  were  frequently  heard  in  the  establishment:  once  its 
local  editor  narrowly  escaped  a  lynching.  In  1878  Stanley  Hunt- 
ley  and  Marshall  H.  Jewell  came  from  Chicago  at  the  instance 
of  Major  Alonson  W.  Edwards,  of  The  Fargo  Republican,  to 
establish  an  opposition  paper  to  The  Bismarck  Tribune  with 
the  help  of  local  Democrats.  Dennis  Hannafin,  a  unique  local 
character,  who  was  known  as  "the  Squatter  Governor,"  gave  a 
bonus  of  one  hundred  dollars.  Lounsberry,  being  financially 
embarrassed  at  the  time,  sold  The  Tribune  to  a  syndicate  headed 
by  the  men  just  mentioned  and  as  part  payment  took  their 
notes.  These  were  not  paid  on  maturity  and  he  again  assumed 
control  of  The  Tribune,  but  sold  the  job  office  to  Mr.  Jewell.  In 
1883  he  took  Mr.  Jewell  into  partnership  and  established  The 
Daily  Tribune. 

The  second  newspaper  was  The  Fargo  Express,  first  issued  on 
January  1,  1874.  It  was  published  by  The  Fargo  Publishing 
Company,  consisting  of  A.  J.  Harwood,  Gordon  J.  Keeney, 
Henry  S.  Back,  Terence  Martin,  Jacob  Lowell,  and  A.  H. 
Moore.  Harwood  and  Keeney  were  the  editors  and  managers. 
W.  G.  Fargo,  of  New  York,  for  whom  Fargo  was  named,  con- 
tributed five  hundred  dollars  toward  the  establishment  of  the 
paper.  About  1875  The  Fargo  Express  was  consolidated  with 
The  Fargo  Mirror,  established  by  A.  J.  Clarke  in  1874,  and  The 
Glyndon  Gazette  (Minnesota),  established  by  E.  B.  Chambers 
in  1872.  The  consolidation  under  the  management  of  Cham- 
bers became  The  Fargo  Times.  Chambers  sold  the  paper  to  E. 
D.  Barker,  who  consolidated  it  with  The  Fargo  Republican,  es- 
tablished by  Major  A.  W.  Edwards  and  Dr.  J.  B.  Hall  in  1878. 
Still  later,  the  paper  united  with  The  Fargo  Forum,  established 
November  17,  1894,  by  Major  Edwards  and  Horatio  C.  Flum- 
mery. 

The  third  newspaper  was  The  Grand  Forks  Plaindealer,  estab- 
lished in  1875  by  George  H.  Walsh.  Later,  it  was  merged  with 
The  Grand  Forks  Herald,  established  in  1879  by  George  B.  Win- 
ship. 


BEGINNINGS  IN  STATES  AND  TERRITORIES    257 

The  fourth  paper  was  The  Jamestown  Alert,  founded  July  4, 

1878,  by  Edward  H.  and  Clarence  E.  Foster.  On  October  17, 

1879,  it  was  sold  to  Marshall  McClure.    Under  his  editorship  it 
became  a  daily  February  14,  1881. 


CHAPTER  XV 

MEXICAN  WAR  TO  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD 
1846—1860 

MANY  of  the  Northern  newspapers  opposed  the  admission  of 
Texas  to  the  Union  until  all  controversies  with  Mexico  had 
been  settled  in  an  amicable  way.  Later,  these  papers  "  pointed 
with  pride"  to  their  editorial  comment  of  previous  years  and 
declared  that  if  their  advice  had  been  followed  there  would  have 
been  no  war  with  Mexico  and  that  possibly  the  great  conflict 
with  the  South  might  have  been  avoided.  The  Tribune,  of 
New  York,  was  one  of  these  papers  hostile  to  the  Mexican  War, 
and  excited  the  animosity  not  only  of  office-holders,  but  also 
of  well-meaning  patriots.  Even  President  Polk  made  a  very 
palpable  allusion  to  The  Tribune  in  one  of  his  messages.  At 
one  of  the  war  meetings  held  in  City  Hall  Park  there  was  some 
talk  of  mobbing  the  office  of  The  Tribune,  but  the  threat  was 
not  then  carried  out,  but  was  reserved  until  during  the  War 
of  the  States.  VThe  Mexican  War  showed  the  value  of  news  to 
get  circulation,  andTt  was  this  recognition  thai  changecT  the 
cKaracter  of  the  American  press  from  a  " feudal"  to  a  purely 
democratic  re*gime\  Party  papers  during  this  transitional  period 
became  still  more  independent  of  political  parties  and  were 
changed  into  journals  of  public  opinion.  The  attitude  of  the 
Northern  press  was  well  summed  up  by  James  Russell  Lowell 
in  his  contribution  of  "The  Biglow  Papers"  to  The  Boston 
Courier.  These  consisted  of  a  collection  of  poems  in  Yankee 
dialect,  supposedly  written  by  Hosea  Biglow,  and  edited  with 
pseudo-learned  notes  by  Homer  Wilbur,  A.M.,  pastor  of  the 
First  Church  of  Jalaam. 

FAMOUS   PONY   EXPRESS 

At  the  beginning  of  the  war  practically  every  paper  received 
its  news  of  the  conflict  through  the  exchanges  from  New  Orleans. 


MEXICAN  WAR  TO  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD      259 

This  meant  that  news  had  lost  its  flavor  when  it  finally  appeared 
in  print:  the  news  of  the  battle  of  Vera  Cruz  and  the  battle  of 
Buena  Vista,  March  7  and  9,  did  not  reach  Boston  until  the 
last  day  of  the  month,  and  being  published  on  April  1,  was  re- 
ceived by  most  of  the  readers  of  The  Boston  Journal  as  an  April 
Fool's  joke.  Of  the  Southern  papers  which  reported  rather  fully 
the  various  battles  of  the  Mexican  War,  The  Picayune,  of  New 
Orleans,  took  the  lead.  The  reason  for  this  may  be  found  in  the 
fact  that  George  Wilkins  Kendall,  the  founder  of  the  paper, 
reported  the  war  himself  in  a  series  of  letters  which  were  so 
important  that  they  were  forwarded  to  the  Government  at 
Washington. 

The  lateness  in  publishing  accountgtof  *-hg  j^onflicts 
can  battlefields  led  to  the  cooperation  of  a  number  of  newspapers 
to  gather  war  newsr  Already  The  tiun,  ot"BaItunore,  had  estab- 
lished exclusively  Tor  its  own  services,  "without  consultation 
or  previous  arrangement  or  agreement  with  any  other  paper," 
an  overland  express  from  New  Organs.  This  pony  express  was 
often  spoken  ot  in  the  press  as  the  "sixty  horse-power,"  be- 
cause sixty  blooded  horses  were  used  in  forwarding  the  news. 
To  reduce  the  tremendous  expense  incurred  by  The  Sun,  a 
number  of  northern  papers  —  notably  The  New  York  Herald 
and  The  Philadelphia  Public  Ledger  —  cooperated  in  the  scheme. 
Later,  The  Crescent  City,  oi'  !New~brleans,  joined  the  combina- 
tion, whose  overland  express,  making  the  trip  from  New  Orleans 
to  Baltimore  in  six  days,  so  often  beat  the  Southern  mail  from 
New  Orleans  to  Washington  that  the  Post-Office  authorities 
started  an  investigation,  but  on  finding  that  they  were  fairly 
beaten  in  the  game  to  be  first  with  the  news,  they  then  tried  to 
throw  all  sorts  of  obstacles  in  the  way  of  their  rival  news-carrier. 
But  the  news  from  Mexico  continued  to  reach  Washington,  not 
through  the  mail-bags,  but  through  the  news-columns  of  the 
various  newspapers  which  shared  in  the  expense  of  the  overland 
express.  In  fact,  all  through  the  war  the  pony  express,  rather // 
than  the  Government  mail,  brought  the  story  of  the  conflict.  'I 

It  was  The  Sun,  of  Baltimore,  which  told  the  President  and 
his  Cabinet  on  April  10,  1847,  of  "the  fall  and  surrender  and 
unconditioned  capitulation  of  the  City  of  Vera  Cruz."  That 


260       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

paper,  in  telling  how  it  got  its  news  from  the  Halls  of  the  Monte- 
zumas,  paid  this  tribute  to  its  faithful  pony  express  in  its  issue 
of  October  4,  1847:  "Our  pony  team  as  if  in  anticipation  of  the 
great  excitement  prevailing  in  the  City  on  Saturday  evening 
(October  2nd),  came  flying  up  to  the  stopping-post  with  the 
most  thrilling  and  important  intelligence  yet  received  from  the 
seat  of  the  war,  full  twenty-four  hours  ahead  of  steamboats, 
railroads,  and  even  telegraphs.  The  news  brought  by  them 
twenty-four  hours  in  advance  of  the  mail  being  of  such  exciting 
and  thrilling  interest,  we  put  to  press  at  a  late  hour  on  Saturday 
night  an  'Extra  Sun/  with  full  details,  which  were  sought  after 
by  our  citizens  during  yesterday  morning." 

These  editions  of  The  Sun  came  to  be  known,  not  only  in  Bal- 
timore, but  also  elsewhere,  as  The  Southern  Daily  Pony  Express 
—  and  justly  so. 

MODEKN  WAR  CORRESPONDENTS  ARRIVE 

The  Mexican  War  not  only  put  the  news  in  newspape/s,  but 
it  developed  war  correspon98!rts*wiio  put  the  heart-throb^  into 
their  stories.  A  typical  illustration  from  The  Louiswlte  (Jourier 
must  suffice  for  lack  of  space :  — 

While  I  was  stationed  with  our  left  wing  in  one  of  the  forts,  on  the 
evening  of  the  21st,  I  saw  a  Mexican  woman  busily  engaged  in  carrying 
bread  and  water  to  the  wounded  men  of  both  armies.  I  saw  this  minis- 
tering angel  raise  the  head  of  a  wounded  man,  give  him  water  and  food, 
and  then  carefully  bind  up  his  wound  with  a  handkerchief  which  she 
took  from  her  own  head.  After  having  exhausted  her  supplies,  she  went 
back  to  her  own  house  to  get  more  bread  and  water  for  others.  As  she 
was  returning  on  her  mission  of  mercy,  to  comfort  other  wounded  per- 
sons, I  heard  the  report  of  a  gun,  and  saw  the  poor  innocent  creature  fall 
dead!  I  think  it  was  an  accidental  shot  that  struck  her.  I  would  not 
be  willing  to  believe  otherwise.  It  made  me  sick  at  heart,  and,  turning 
from  the  scene,  I  involuntarily  raised  my  eyes  toward  heaven,  and 
thought,  great  God!  and  is  this  war?  Passing  the  spot  next  day,  I  saw 
her  body  still  lying  there  with  the  bread  by  her  side,  and  the  broken 
gourd,  with  a  few  drops  of  water  still  in  it  —  emblems  of  her  errand.  We 
buried  her,  and  while  we  were  digging  her  grave  cannon  balls  flew 
around  us  like  hail. 

From  1846,  when  this  account  appeared,  newspapers  became 
more  human,  not  only  in  their  subject-matter,  but  also  in  their 


MEXICAN  WAR  TO  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD      261 


mode  of  treatment.    "The  feature  storv"  hfg*"  tn  nrmkp  its 

appAflr».pnP^iAntil_it^jPfl.r>.hpH    its    Vghfst    fWplnpmpnt    in    the 

stories  of  the  "sob  sisters"  of  the  present-day  journalism. 

Out  of  the  war  correspondence  from  Mexico  grew  the  popu- 
larity of  Jefferson  Davis,  who  later  became  President  of  the 
Southern  Confederacy.  The  correspondents  of  such  New  Or- 
leans papers  as  The  Picayune,  The  Herald,  and  The  Delta  feat- 
ured in  their  reports  the  bravery  of  Colonel  Davis,  of  the 
Mississippi  Rifle  Regiment,  in  repulsing  the  charge  of  the  Mexi- 
cans in  Buena  Vista. 

AMERICAN   ARMY   ORGANS 

During  the  Mexican  War  an  army  newspaper  was  found  in 
practically  every  camp.  The  army  under  General  Scott  had  its 
own  organ  known  as  The  American  Flag,  which  reported  the 
doings  of  the  troops  under  "Old  Rough  and  Ready."  The  army 
under  General  Taylor  also  had  its  special  newspaper.  Of  these 
special  army  organs  mention  might  be  made  of  The  Sentinel, 
published  in  Tampico,  The  American  Star  at  Jalapo,  The  Eagle 
at  Vera  Cruz,  and  The  Picket  Guard  at  Saltillo. 

FOLK'S   PAPER  AT  WASHINGTON 

Polk,  like  the  other  Presidents,  had  to  have  a  special  organ. 
TheJUjdon  at  Nashville  had  been  a  strong  supporter  of  the  Polk 
wing  of  the  Democracy  and  TheJZn&u^  at  Richmond  had 
aided  in  the  defeat  of  Van  Bur^nT  Polk  therefore  thought  it  a 
good  piece  of  politics  to  bring  a  representative  from  each  of 
these  papers  to  Washington  for  a  new  organ,  and  TheUnionjiL 
making  its  appearance  on  May  1,  1845,  under  the^eo!i?OTs!iip  of 
John  P.  Heiss  and  Thomas  Ritchie,  supplanted  The  Globe  as 
the  official  paper  at  Washington. 

During  the  Mexican  War  The  Union  was  brought  prominently 
before  the  people  through  publishing  an  attack  on  Congress  for 
not  supporting  the  Administration  in  several  military  matters. 
The  criticism  was  not  allowed  to  pass  unnoticed,  for  four  days 
after  its  appearance  in  print  a  resolution  was  introduced  into 
the  Senate  calling  for  the  expulsion  of  the  editor  of  The  Union 
from  the  floor  upon  the  ground  of  libel  upon  the  Senate  and  for 


262       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

the  expulsion  of  the  reporters  of  The  Union  from  the  press 
gallery  on  the  ground  of  a  colored  report  of  the  debate  of  the 
previous  Monday.  The  debate  which  followed  was  important 
because  it  definitely  established  the  rights  of  the  press  at  Wash- 
ington. The  resolution  was  lost  by  a  vote  of  27  to  21. 

ORGAN  OF  TAYLOR'S  ADMINISTRATION 

After  the  battle  of  Buena  Vista  several  papers,  led  by  The 
Sentinel,  of  Boston,  suggested  the  nomination  of  Zachary  Tay- 
lor. Other  papers  adopted  the  suggestion  and  strongly  advo- 
cated his  election.  When  he  came  to  the  White  House  he  found 
that  he  was  without  an  official  newspaper  at  the  Capital,  as 
The  National  Intelligencer  was  the  organ  of  Daniel  Webster. 
TayJorJmmediately  prepared  to  establish  a  newspaper  which  he 
called  TJieJte-public.  For  its  editors  he  brought  Alexander  Bui- 
lit  t  from  The  New  Orleans  Picayune  and  John  0.  Sargent  from 
The  New  York  Courier  and  Enquirer. 

Dujjng^ Taylor*sAdministration TheNationalJZra,  the  recog- 
nized oSanoftIie~anti-sla  very  party  at  Washington,  published 
"  Uncle^Tum^  Cabin  n  HS  a 'serial.  No  romance"ever  printed  in 
an  American  newspaper  attracted  so  much  attention  in  the 
press.  Its  influence  was  clearly  recognized  by  Lincoln,  for 
when  he  met  its  author,  Harriet  Beecher  Stowe,  he  remarked, 
"So  you  are  the  little  woman  who  caused  this  great  war."  The 
great  influence  of  this  tale  was  due  not  only  to  its  newspaper 
publication,  but  also  to  the  book  and  to  the  play.  The  National 
Era  should  not  be  confused  with  The  New  Era  later  edited  for 
the  colored  people  by  Frederick  Douglass. 

JOURNALISM   OF   THE   PACIFIC   COAST 

The  discovery  of  gold  in  California,  strange  to  say,  did  not 
attract  very  much  attention  in  the  press  of  that  State.  Possibly 
The  Calif ornian  published  in  its  issue  for  March  5,  1848,  the 
best  account  under  the  small  caption,  "Gold  Mine  Found": 
"In  the  newly  made  raceway  of  the  Saw  Mill  recently  erected  by 
Captain  Sutter,  on  the  American  Fork,  gold  has  been  found  in 
considerable  quantities.  One  person  brought  thirty  dollars 
worth  to  New  Helvetia,  gathered  there  in  a  short  time.  Call- 


MEXICAN  WAR  TO  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD      263 

fornia,  no  doubt,  is  rich  in  mineral  wealth;  great  chances  here 
for  scientific  capitalists.  Gold  has  been  found  in  almost  eveiy 
part  of  the  country."  The  Calif ornian  gave  practically  the  same 
amount  of  space  to  a  local  horse-race.  [The  real  news  of  the  dis- 
covery of  gold  was  made  known  through  the  columns  of  the 
papers  published  on  the  Atlantic  Coast.f 

Among  the  newspapers  which  made  a  specialty  of  their 
special  California  editions  were  The  Tribune  and  The  Herald, 
of  New  York,  The  Journal  and  The  Herald,  of  Boston,  The  Delta, 
of  New  Orleans,  etc.  These  special  editions,  printed  just  before 
San  Francisco  boats  sailed,  were  shipped  to  the  Pacific  Coast 
depots  for  the  distribution  of  Atlantic  papers  where  men,  fre- 
quently in  the  employ  of  local  express  companies,  relayed  these 
papers  in  large  baskets  to  the  outlying  mining  camps.  Miners 
were  expected  to  throw  a  dollar  into  the  basket  in  exchange  for  a 
newspaper,  but  if  a  man  did  not  have  "the  dirt/'  he  could  still 
take  a  copy  and  pay  for  it  later  when  he  struck  a  "  paying  streak." 

After  gold  had  been  discovered  in  California,  many  of  the 
mining  camps  had  what  might  be  called  a  spoken  newspaper. 
The  man  sent  back  for  grub  usually  returned  with  an  Eastern 
paper  for  which  he  had  paid  one  to  five  dollars.  Immediately 
upon  his  arrival  he  would  mount  a  stump  and  then  read  the 
news  to  a  group  of  miners  and  then  the  paper  would  be  passed 
along  to  an  adjoining  camp,  where  it  would  again  be  read  aloud: 
in  this  way  did  the  California  miner  of  the  fifties  get  his  news. 
Frequently  these  special  California  editions  of  the  Atlantic 
papers  were  literally  worn  thumb-bare  by  frequent  readings  and 
handlings,  for  the  greatest  luxury  in  a  mining  camp  was  a  late 
newspaper. 

From  the  time  that  The  Calif  ornian  was  founded  at  Monterey, 
on  August  15,  ,1846,  down  to  the  completion  of  the  transcon- 
tinental telegraph  on  October  24,  ^86L  three  hundred  anH 
seventy-seven  papers  had  been  started  in  California.  Many  of 
these  were  printed  at  Marysville,  Placerville,  Sacramento, 
San  Jose,  Stockton,  and  Yerka,  and  the  great  majority,  of 
course,  at  San  Francisco.  Of  the  daily  papers  located  in  San 
Francisco,  mention  may  be  made  of  The  Daily  Herald,  started 
on  June  1,  1850;^e  Evening  Picayune,  on  August  3.  1850i 


264       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

The  Morning  Post,  on  May  24,  1851 ;  The  San  Francisco  Daily 
Wttg,  olfaepiember  27,  185%/Jflg Daily  Sun  on  May  19,  1853; 

The  Evening  News,  on  November  1,  1853;  The  Daily  Globe,  on 
March  13,  1856;  The  True  Calif ornian,  on  May  26,  1856;  and 
The  Evening  Telegram,  on  October  1,  1858. 

JOURNALISM  HISTORY  REPEATED 

Journalism  history  repeated  itself  on  the  Pacific  Coast.  In 
the  East  presses  which  printed  early  newspapers  had  often  done 
previous  service  on  religious  tracts:  especially  was  this  true  in 
New  England  and  in  Pennsylvania,  where  for  the  most  part 
these  tracts  were  put  out  in  the  interest  of  that  earnest  band 
seeking  religious  freedom  in  America  by  settling  in  New  Eng- 
land, or  by  the  Pennsylvania  Quakers,  who  made  William 
Bradford  their  official  printer.  On  the  Pacific  Coast  the  print- 
ing-press was  first  brought  either  to  promulgate  the  Catholic 
faith  among  the  Spanish-speaking  population,  or  to  support  the 
principles  for  which  the  Mormon  Church  stood.  Later,  these 
same  presses  were  used  to  print  the  newspapers. 

Just  as  the  colonial  newspaper  never  forgot  the  arrival  and  de- 
parture of  ships,  so  the  early  press  of  the  Pacific  Coast  featured 
marine  intelligence.  In  its  glowing  accounts  of  achievements  of 
clipper  ships  it  furnished  its  best  illustration  of  its  news  instinct. 
Again,  just  as  Henry  Ingraham  Blake,  the  first  star  reporter  in 
American  journalism,  knew  the  name  of  every  vessel  docking  at 
the  port  of  Boston,  so  the  nautical  reporter  on  the  early  San 
Francisco  paper  knew  every  clipper  ship  which  passed  through 
the  Golden  Gate,  —  a  still  harder  task,  for  in  1852  seventy-two 
clipper  ships  are  said  to  have  dropped  anchor  in  that  harbor. 
The  arrival  of  these  fast  boats  in  San  Francisco  had  another 
news  value  in  that  they  brought  news  from  home.  These  clippers 
were  met  in  the  harbor  by  rowboats  which  took  off  the  news,  just 
as  it  had  been  done  at  an  earlier  period  in  Boston  and  New  York, 
and  then  hastened  to  the  port.  Their  budget  of  news  was 
promptly  seized  at  the  dock  and  rushed  to  the  newspaper  offices, 
where  the  more  important  facts  in  an  abbreviated  form  were 
put  into  type  at  the  earliest  possible  moment.  The  next  day 
a  longer  account  appeared  in  the  papers. 


MEXICAN  WAR  TO  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD     265 

The  early  American  newspapers  were  filled  with  long  extracts 
from  English  newspapers  because  the  American  colonists  were 
especially  interested  in  what  England  and  the  Continent  were 
doing.  In  the  same  way  the  early  papers  on  the  Pacific  Coast 
contained  column  after  column  of  reprint  from  the  Eastern 
papers  for  its  settlers  who  wanted  the  news  from  home.  A  most 
distinctive  characteristic  of  the  early  Pacific  press  was  its 
catholicity  of  taste  in  printing  cosmopolitan  news. 

Pacific  Coast  journalism  passed  through  the  same  vicious 
personal  era  as  that  found  in  the  East.  Quarrels  between  editors 
became  frequent,  and  newspapers  were  not  considered  inter- 
esting unless  they  were  lambasting  some  one.  Often  these  edi- 
torial battles  led  to  others  on  the  field  of  honor,  where  the 
number  of  editors  killed  was  undoubtedly  larger  because  the 
Westerners  shot  straighter.  The  author  of  the  "Annuals  of  San 
Francisco,"  in  speaking  of  the  editors  of  the  era,  remarked: 
"  They  were  particularly  exposed  not  merely  to  the  literary  rak- 
ing fire  of  antagonists,  but  to  their  literal  fire  as  well."  Demands 
for  satisfaction  continued  to  come  not  only  from  other  editors, 
but  also  from  subscribers,  until  "The  Irrepressible  Conflict"  in 
which  Seward  forecast  the  War  of  the  States  turned  the  edi- 
torial page  from  a  discussion  of  local  personalities  to  a  broader 
treatment  of  an  approaching  national  crisis. 

MEDILL  AND   HIS   PAPER 

While  the  people  of  the  village  of  Chicago  read  their  first 
newspaper  on  the  morning  of  November  26.  J.833.  when  John 
Calhoun  brought  out  the  first  number  of  The  Chicago  Democrat. 
the  journalism  of  that  city  really  dates  from  the  birth  of  The 
Tribune  on  June  10, 184L  when  an  edition  of  four  hundred  copies 
was  worked  off  on  a  hand-press  by  JosephJKeliev  and  John 
Wheeler.  The  immediate  source  of  The  Tribune  was  an  earlier 
paper  published  under  the  bucolic  title  of  The  Gem  of  the  Prairie, 
and  it  later  absorbed  The  Chicago  Democrat.  The  Tribune,  there- 
fore, is  entitled  to  be  considered  the  oldest  paper  in  Chicago 
(though,  strictly  speaking,  The  Chicago  Daily  Journal  has  been 
published  from  1844),  and  no  one  will  deny  it  a  first  place,  not 
only  among  the  newspapers  of  that  city,  but  also  among  the 


266       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

newspapers  of  the  country.  During  its  early  years  there  were 
various  changes  in  ownership,  and  the  paper  was  at  times  in 
dubious  financial  circumstances,  until  Joseph  MedJJI,  i"  18*-V 
purchased  an  interest  and  the  paper  became  a  member  of  the 
Associated  Press.  Even  then,  and  after  it  had  purchased  The 
Democrat,  The  Tribune  was  occasionally  in  financial  straits  and 
had  to  refuse  the  payment  of  its  obligations,  not  only  to  the 
Associated  Press,  but  also  to  others  until  it  was  financially 
forced  into  bankruptcy.  The  owners  of  the  paper,  however, 
had  faith  in  their  enterprise,  and,  undiscouraged  by  financial 
difficulties,  they  secured  a  three  years'  extension  of  their  debts 
—  all  of  which  were  discharged  in  twenty-one  months  —  and 
began  anew.  The  fullness  with  which  the  paper  reported  the 
Lincoln-Douglas  debates  brought  not  only  an  increased  circu- 
lation, but  also  relief  from  financial  embarrassment.  Its  great 
influence,  however,  came  from  the  editorials  of  Medill  —  edi- 
torials which  were  only  surpassed  by  those  of  Horace  Greeley. 
It  was  on  The  Tribune  that  Horace  White  first  made  a  place  for 
himself  in  American  journalism. 

RELIGIOUS   DAILY   NEWSPAPERS 

In  every  period  of  American  journalism  there  have  been  edi- 
tors who  laid  special  emphasis  upon  the  moral  character  of  their 
newspapers.  Some  attempted  to  make  their  sheets  distinctly 
religious  organs.  Out  of  £the  latter  grew  the  religious  weeklies 
of  the  various  denominations.  Occasionally  an  editor  like  Arthur 
Tappan,  of  The  New  York  Journal  of  Commerce,  positively  refused 
to  gather  news  on  Sunday  and  excluded  all  advertisements  of 
theaters,  amusements,  etc.  No  attempt,  however,  was  made 
to  found  a  distinctly  religious  daily  newspaper  until  1839. 

FIRST   IN   PHILADELPHIA 

In  that  year  a  number  of  wealthy  Philadelphia  gentlemen 
possessed  of  high  moral  and  religious  principles  set  about  to  pub- 
lish a  daily  commercial  sheet  that  should  be  at  least  semi-reli- 
gious in  character.  After  advancing  the  necessary  capital  they 
launched  on  March  29, 1839,  the  first  number  of  The  North  Amer- 
ican. Religion  was  kept  out  of  the  news,  but  the  editorials  were 


MEXICAN  WAR  TO  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD      267 

largely  moral  essays.  No  notices  of  the  theaters  were  admitted 
in  the  news-columns.  Rigidly  excluded  were  all  advertisements 
of  the  theaters;  also  under  the  ban  were  the  advertisements 
of  oyster-cellars,  now  commonly  known  as  saloons.  After  sus- 
taining a  heavy  loss  the  promoters  of  the  religious  North  Ameri- 
can sold  the  paper  for  practically  the  value  of  the  type,  press, 
etc.,  to  George  R.  Graham  and  Alexander  Cummings.  These 
men,  both  able  writers,  succeeded  in  introducing  new  life  into 
the  newspaper  because  of  their  enterprise  in  getting  the  news 
first.  After  abandoning  the  original  design  of  the  paper  they 
secured  as  its  editor  Robert  T.  Conrad,  who  had  already  won 
distinction  as  a  jurist,  a  poet,  a  dramatist,  and  author. 

TEMPORARY  ECLIPSE   OF   "THE   NEW  YORK   SUN" 

From  August,  1860,  to  December,  1861,  The  Sun,  of  New  York, 
was  made  over  into  a  daily  religious  newspaper.  As  the  story 
of  this  experiment  has  never  been  told,  it  might  be  well  to 
record  this  interesting  experiment  in  the  present  chapter.  An 
able,  but  fanatical,  newspaper  man,  laboring  under  the  delusion 
that  he  acted  under  the  direction  and  guidance  of  the  Lord  in 
answer  to  prayer,  conceived  the  idea  that  he  should  publish  a 
daily  religious  newspaper.  Having  no  funds  himself,  he  inserted 
in  one  of  the  daily  papers  an  advertisement  in  which  he  sought 
the  assistance  of  some  one  of  means  to  assist  in  such  a  religious 
enterprise.  The  advertisement  attracted  the  attention  of  the 
Reverend  Archibald  M.  Morrisson,  a  clergyman  living  in  Phila- 
delphia. The  latter  was  the  son  of  a  Reverend  Dr.  Stone,  of 
the  Episcopal  Church,  Brookline,  Massachusetts.  His  mother 
before  her  marriage  had  been  courted  by  a  wealthy  gentleman 
who  lived  and  died  a  bachelor,  but  who  later  willed  all  his  property, 
amounting  to  several  hundred  thousand  dollars,  to  the  son  of 
Dr.  Stone  on  the  condition  that  he  adopt  the  name  of  the  testator. 

Morrisson  was  a  man  of  fine  quality,  but  thought  that  the 
rather  peculiar  character  in  which  he  had  received  his  good 
fortune  imposed  upon  him  an  obligation  to  use  it  in  some  reli- 
gious way.  The  advertisement  just  mentioned  suggested  such  a 
religious  use.  He  answered  the  advertisement  and  the  two  men 
after  a  prayer  meeting  decided  that  the  Lord  needed  a  news- 


268       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

paper  of  his  own  in  New  York  City.  They  accordingly  Plir" 
chased  The  New  York  Sun  from  Moses  S.  Beach  for  onejiun- 
dred  thousand  dollars,  with  the  option  of  taking  the  machinery 
aVtm  additional  payment  of  twenty-five  thousand.  In  pur- 
chasing the  paper,  Morrisson  paid  fifty  thousand  dollars  in 
cash  and  gave  notes  for  the  otner  fifty  thousand  secureoTby  a 
mortgage  on  The  Sun.  They  secured  as  editor  of  their  religious 
paper  William  'Conaht  Church,  the  brother  of  the  writer  of 
the  famous  Sun  editorial,  trls  There  a  Santa  Claus?  "  Church, 
being  a  practical  newspaper  man,  was  never  thoroughly  in  accord 
with  the  idea  of  making  The  Sun  a  religious  paper,  but  thought 
that  he  could  persuade  its  owners  to  be  content  with  the  pub- 
lishing of  a  high-grade  moral  newspaper.  He  was  unsuccessful 
in  bringing  the  real  owners  to  his  point  of  view,  for  they  insisted 
that  they  were  directed  by  the  Lord  to  conduct  the  paper  ac- 
cording to  plans  they  had  outlined.  Finding  that  he  could  not 
convince  the  "  Vice-regents  of  the  Lord  "  that  their  plan  if  carried 
out  would  speedily  ruin  The  Sun,  he  accepted  a  compromise 
proposition.  He  was  paid  a  salary  in  full  for  the  term  of  his  con- 
tract and  was'allowed  to  spend  the  remainder  of  the  time  in  trav- 
eling in  Europe.  While  he  was  abroad,  his  prophecy  about  the 
paper  came  true.  Morrisson  practically  lost  every  cent  he  had 
in  trying  to  make  The  Sun  "a  daily  lay  preacher  to  the  poorer 
classes  of  New  York."  Fortunately,  before  embarking  upon  the 
publishing  of  a  religious  daily,  Morrisson  had  settled  a  con- 
siderable portion  of  his  estate  upon  his  wife,  and  she  had  re- 
ligiously and  wisely  refused  to  yield  her  money  to  be  jeopardized 
in  the  publishing  of  a  religious  sheet.  In  throwing  out  the  liquor, 
cigar,  theatrical,  and  other  irreligious  advertisements,  Morris- 
son  had  greatly  reduced  the  income  from  the  paper;  he  had  also 
increased  the  expenses  to  such  an  extent  that  the  time  arrived 
when  he  was  unable  to  meet  his  notes.  Beach  still  had  his  lien 
on  The  Sun,  and  when  the  notes  were  not  paid,  he  sold  the  prop- 
erty at  the  Merchants'  Exchange  and  "knocked  it  down " to 
himself  at  his  own  price.  The  Sun  then  ceased  to  begin  the  day's 
work  with  a  prayer  meeting  in  the  editorial  rooms.  The  experi- 
ment, interesting  as  it  was,  almost  caused  the  total  eclipse  of 
The  Sun. 


MEXICAN  WAR  TO  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD     269 

RELIGIOUS  BIRTH   OF   "THE   NEW  YORK  WORLD" 

Alexander  Cummings  was  one  of  those  who  had  purchased 
The  North  American  in  Philadelphia  after  its  failure  as  a  reli- 
gious newspaper.  Evidently  he  had  faith  in  such  an  enterprise, 
for  he  made  a  second  attempt  to  establish  a  newspaper  of  that 
kind,  but  in  another  city.  Getting  together  a  number  of  men, 
chiefly  from  Philadelphia,  who  held  a  similar  view,  he  started 
in  New  York  on  June  1,  1860,  The  World  as  a  two-cent  religious 
daily  newspaper  —  not  a  one-cent  sheet  as  has  been  so  commonly 
asserted.  It  was  advertised  extensively  in  the  religious  press  and 
in  the  back  part  of  church  hymnals.  Backed  by  sufficient  capital 
and  possessed  of  experience  dearly  bought  in  Philadelphia,  Cum- 
mings made  a  heroic  struggle  to  give  the  people  of  New  York  an 
ideal  newspaper.  Church  notices  appeared  on  the  first  page  of 
the  first  issue.  Supplies  for  Sabbath  school  and  sermon  paper 
at  wholesale  and  at  retail,  etc.,  were  advertised  in  its  columns. 
A  special  rate  of  four  dollars  a  year  was  quoted  to  clergymen. 
It  refused  to  print  the  theatrical  news  and  rigidly  excluded  all 
theatrical  advertising  from  its  columns.  Whatever  might  be 
true  of  its  editorial  policy,  it  was  not  consistent  in  its  advertising, 
for  early  issues  of  The  World  saw  any  number  of  quack  patent 
medicines,  such  as  soothing  syrup,  etc.,  extensively  advertised. 
After  being  published  at  a  heavy  loss  and  failing  to  secure  suf- 
ficient popular  support  in  its  religious  intelligence,  it  merged 
with  The  Courier  and  Enquirer  on  July  1,  1861,  and  its  religious 
aspect  was  dropped.  Though  The  Courier  and  Enquirer  was  the 
more  important  of  the  two  journals,  The  World  by  some  mere  co- 
incidence was  placed  first  in  the  title.  For  this  reason  the  paper 
after  the  years  went  by  came  to  be  known  as  The  World,  and 
after  a  while  The  Courier  and  Enquirer  was  dropped  completely 
from  the  heading.  Two  hundred  thousand  dollars  were  spent 
in  this  second  attempt  to  give  New  York  a  religious  daily  news- 
paper. The  paper  then  became  a  worldly  World. 

RAYMOND   AND   HIS  PAP,ER 

The  founding  of  The  New  YorkJEimes  really  grew  out  of  the 
financial  success  of  The  New  York  Tribune.  A  remark  by  Henry 
Jarvis  Raymond  that  the  latter  paper  was  clearing  over  seventy- 


270       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

five  thousand  dollars  a  year,  and  that  a  new  daily  in  New  York 
ought  to  do  equally  as  well,  aroused  the  interest  of  George 
Jones,  a  banker  of  Albany,  New  York.  It  must  be  confessed, 
however,  that  the  starting  of  a  new  paper  in  New  York  had 
often  been  the  subject  of  conversation  and  the  chief  topic  of  a 
long  correspondence  between  the  two  gentlemen.  In  1848  Thur- 
low  Weed,  who  had  founded  The  Albany  Evening  Journal  and 
made  it  one  of  the  most  influential  political  sheets  of  the  Empire 
State,  was  seriously  thinking  of  retiring  from  journalism. 
Through  George  Jones  the  editorship  of  the  paper  was  offered 
to  Raymond,  whose  work  on  The  New  York  Courier  and  Enquirer 
had  attracted  attention  even  in  Albany.  Negotiations  failed  to 
materialize,  but  the  establishment  of  a  new  "Whig  vehicle  of 
intelligence  in  New  York"  was  repeatedly  mapped  out.  Nothing 
definite  was  done  until  Raymond,  leaving  journalism  temporarily 
to  go  into  politics,  had  been  made  Speaker  of  the  Assembly  at 
Albany.  The  remark  about  the  success  of  The  Tribune  was  ut- 
tered as  Raymond  and  Jones  were  crossing  the  Hudson  in  the 
winter  of  1850-51.  Action,  which  spoke  louder  than  words, 
brought  about  the  firm  of  Rayjnond,  Jongs  &  Company  to  start 
The  New  York  Daily  Timeson  September  18,1851^ 

Raymond  had  been  well  trained  for  the  tast  hewas  about  to 
assume.  While  still  a  student  at  the  University  of  Vermont  he 
had  written  for  Greeley's  New  Yorker.  Later,  he  became  a  paid 
contributor  to  its  columns,  and  after  The  Tribune  was  estab- 
lished he  was  made  one  of  the  assistant  editors  and  the  chief 
reporter  at  the  magnificent  salary  of  ten  dollars  per  week.  In  the 
field  of  reporting  he  achieved  distinct  success.  Even  The  Boston 
Post,  a  Democratic  daily  started  on  November  9,  1831,  and 
The  Boston  Atlas,  a  Whig  organ  started  on  July  2,  1832,  ad- 
mitted that  Raymond  was  about  the  only  journalist  who  could 
faithfully  reproduce  the  speeches  of  Webster  whose  Latin 
phrases  were  too  much  for  the  ordinary  reporter.  Leaving  The 
Tribune  in  1843,  Raymond  joined  the  editorial  staff  of  The 
Courier  and  Enquirer,  with  which  he  was  connected  until  1850, 
and  in  which  he  disputed  the  supremacy  of  James  Watson  Webb 
as  a  writer  on  political  topics.  In  addition  to  his  regular  duties 
he  also  wrote  New  York  letters  for  Western  papers. 


MEXICAN  WAR  TO  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD      271 

When  The  Tribune  learned  that  Raymond  was  going  to  start 
The  Times  to  dispute  the  Whig  field  in  New  York,  it  promptly 
gave  notice  to  its  carriers  that  if  any  of  them  should  get  up 
routes  for  the  new  paper,  they  would  forfeit  all  rights  to  carry 
The  Tribune.  The  large  blanket  sheets  likewise  opposed  a  new 
rival,  and  did  what  they  could  to  insinuate  that  the  new  paper 
was  going  to  be  a  rabid  abolition  sheet.  When  Raymond  wrote 
his  prospectus  he  took  care  to  outline  somewhat  at  length 
just  what  The  Times  hoped  to  become.  It  was  going  to  print 
the  local  news  of  the  day,  insert  correspondence  from  European 
countries,  give  full  reports  of  Congressional  and  legislative 
proceedings,  review  books,  and  contain  criticism  of  music, 
drama,  painting,  and  any  form  of  art  which  might  merit  atten- 
tion. His  statement  about  the  editorial  policy  was  of  course  the 
most  important.  The  Times  would  inculcate  devotion  to  the 
Union,  the  Constitution,  obedience  to  law,  and  a  generous  love 
of  that  personal  and  civil  liberty  which  the  Constitution  and 
laws  are  made  to  preserve:  while  it  would  exert  and  exercise 
the  right  freely  to  discuss  every  subject  of  public  interest,  it 
would  not  countenance,  however,  any  improper  interference 
on  the  part  of  the  people  of  one  locality  with  the  institutions,  or 
even  the  prejudices,  of  any  other;  it  would  seek  to  allay,  rather 
than  to  excite,  agitation;  it  would  substitute  reason  for  preju- 
dice and  make  cool  and  intelligent  judgment  take  the  place  of 
passion  in  all  discussions  of  public  affairs. 

After  the  first  issue  of  The  Times  appeared  on  September  18, 
1851,  subscriptions  came  in  rapidly  and  advertising  soon  fol- 
lowed. It  was  not  so  easy  to  start  a  paper,  however,  in  1851  as  it 
had  been  in  the  early  thirties  when  Bennett  started  The  Herald. 
The  Hoe  press  and  the  mechanical  outfit  necessary  for  a  daily 
paper  cost,  at  a  low  estimate,  at  least  fifty  thousand  dollars. 
To  compete  with  the  papers  already  in  existence  Raymond  was 
forced  to  hire  competent  editorial  assistants  at  a  much  larger 
salary  than  he  received  when  he  started  to  work  on  The  Tribune. 
Over  one  hundred  thousand  dollars  was  sunk  in  the  enterprise 
before  it  made  a  profit,  and  it  was  a  long  time  before  the  paper 
made  the  amount  which  Raymond  mentioned  to  Jones  when 
they  crossed  the  frozen  Hudson  in  1850.  In  September,  1861, 


272       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

The  Times  showed  its  pocket-book  as  follows:  "Our  cash  re- 
ceipts have  been  $50,000  more  this  year  than  they  were  last  up  to 
the  same  time.  All  through  the  dullest  of  the  summer  months 
we  have  had  a  balance  of  from  $15,000  to  $20,000  in  the  bank. 
We  have  no  notes  afloat  which  we  are  not  prepared  to  cash  on 
presentation. " 

One  thing  which  helped  The  Times,  however,  was  its  selection 
by  the  State  Banking  Department  at  Albany  as  the  official 
paper  in  which  the  metropolitan  banks  should  publish  their 
weekly  statements  as  required  by  law.  These  statements, 
often  containing  the  very  best  of  financial  news  and  often  occu- 
pying two  or  three  columns,  had  to  be  paid  for  by  the  banks  at 
the  regular  advertising  rate  of  The  Times.  As  a  matter  of  fact, 
practically  every  New  York  paper  was  glad  to  publish  these 
statements,  but  The  Times  was  the  only  one  to  receive  compen- 
sation for  their  notice.  The  Times  had  secured  this  concession 
because  one  of  its  leading  stockholders,  D.  B.  St.  John,  was  the 
State  Superintendent  of  Banks,  and  he  naturally  favored  the 
newspaper  in  which  he  had  a  financial  interest.  By  withholding 
these  bank  statements  from  other  New  York  papers  until  they 
had  first  appeared  in  The  Times,  Raymond  was  able  to  square 
matters  with  Greeley,  who  had  refused  to  allow  Tribune  carriers 
to  distribute  copies  of  The  Times.  Greeley  promptly  took  the 
matter  up  with  St.  John,  but  was  unable  to  secure  any  satisfac- 
tion: in  one  of  his  letters  of  protest  he  said:  "All  this  insolence 
of  this  little  villain  is  founded  on  your  injustice,"  and  the  New 
York  press,  whenever  it  saw  fit  to  attack  The  Times,  spoke  of  its 
editor  as  "the  little  villain." 

EXPOSURE   OF  LAND   GRAB 

On  January  6,  1857,  The  Times  published  what  it  called  a 
magnificent  land-stealing  scheme.  Among  the  men  who  left  The 
Courier  and  Enquirer  in  1851  to  become  connected  with_7%e 
Times  was  James  W.  Simontpn,  who  later  became  connected  with 
the  Associated  Press.  At  the  beginning  of  1 857  he  was  the  Wash- 
ington correspondent  for  The  Times.  He  it  was  who  exposed  the 
8chejne_ofjand-robbery  which,  under  the  guise  of  granting  cer- 
talnpublicTands  to  the  Territory  of  Minnesota  to  help  build 


MEXICAN  WAR  TO  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD      273 

railroads,  practically  gave  away  the  larger  part  of  that  Terri- 
tory. When  the  edition  of  The  Times  reached  Washington,  it 
created  almost  as  much  of  a  stir  as  the  edition  which  startled 
New  York  by  the  exposure  of  the  Tweed  Ring.  The  House 
promptly  ordered  an  investigation,  and  on  February  19  its  com- 
mittee reported  that  the  charges  of  corruption  as  published  in 
The  Times  had  been  proved  and  recommended  that  four  mem- 
bers of  the  House  be  promptly  expelled.  This  exposure  was  one 
of  the  most  distinct  services  for  the  public  good  performed  by 
the  press  so  far  in  the  history  of  American  journalism. 

RAYMOND   VS.    GREELEY 

Like  Greeley,  Raymond  was  vitally  interested  in  politics. 
Unlike  Greeley,  Raymond  conceived  the  idea  that  the  first  busi- 
ness of  a  newspaper  was  to  publish  the  news  rather  than  to  print 
the  political  views  of  its  editor.  In  politics  Raymond  was  the 
more  successful  as  he  held  several  offices  under  the  Whigs.  In  a 
certain  sense  he  was  the  Father  of  the  Republican  Party:  at 
any  rate,  it  was  he  who  announced  its  birth  in  an  address  "To 
the  People  of  the  United  States,"  delivered  before  the  Republican 
Convention  at  Pittsburgh,  February  22,  1856.  The  Times,  how- 
ever, reached  its  greatest  influence  under  his  editorship  when  he 
retired  from  politics  and  devoted  all  his  energy  to  the  newspaper 
which  he  had  founded.  Then  it  widened  its  influence  through  a 
larger  circulation,  while  its  stock  rose  in  value  from  one  thousand 
dollars  to  eleven  thousand  dollars  a  share,  until  an  offer  of  one 
million  dollars  for  the  paper  was  refused  by  its  owners.  Unfor- 
tunately, Raymond  could  not  make  a  decision  "  never  again  to 
be  a  politician"  until  a  short  time  before  his  death.  Greeley 
thought  himself  —  and  was  —  greater  than  The  Tribune.  Ray- 
mond thought  The  Times  was  greater  than  himself  —  greater 
than  all  the  men  then  associated  with  him  on  the  paper:  he  was 
the  first  great  editor  to  place  his  newspaper  before  himself. 

TELEGRAPH  OF  MORSE 

The  man  who  brought  about  the  greatest  transformation  in 
American  journalism,  not  only  in  this  period,  but  even  in  any 
other  before  or  after,  was  not  a  practical  newspaper  man,  but, 


274       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

strange  as  it  may  seem,  a  college  professor,  Samuel  Finley  Breese 
Morse,  of  New  York  University.  During  1832-36  Morse,  when 
not  busy  with  his  academic  duties,  had  been  experimenting  with 
an  electric  device  to  send  messages  over  wires  he  had  stretched 
in  and  out  of  the  classrooms  of  the  old  University  Building  on 
Washington  Square. 

To  many,  including  several  of  his  colleagues,  the  instrument 
was  only  an  interesting  mechanical  toy  of  no  practical  value. 
But  when  Horace  Greeley  was  given  a  private  demonstration  of 
the  magnetic  telegraph,  he  was  most  enthusiastic  about  its 
possibilities,  and  said  to  Morse,  "  You  are  going  to  turn  the  news- 
paper office  upside  down  with  your  invention."  In  spite  of  this 
remark  and  the  fact  that  he  later  wrote  a  magazine  article  about 
the  instrument,  Greeley  allowed  his  rival,  Bennett,  of  The  Herald, 
to  excel  in  using  the  telegraph  to  supplement  the  news  that  came 
by  mail.  The  telegraph  did  not  completely  supplant  the  mail 
as  a  carrier  of  news  till  a  much  later  period. 

New  York  papers,  however,  were  not  the  first  to  use  the  tele- 
graph: this  honor  belongs  to  those  of  Baltimore.  The  cities  of 
Baltimore  and  Washington  had  no  sooner  been  connected  in 
1844  by  wire  —  largely  through  Government  aid  —  than  both 
morning  and  afternoon  papers  of  the  former  city  began  to  print 
items  headed  "By  Morse's  Magnetic  Telegraph."  Later,  when 
the  telegraph  line  reached  the  Jersey  coast  opposite  New  York, 
the  proceedings  of  Congress  and  important  news  of  Washington, 
Baltimore,  and  Philadelphia  were  sent  by  wire  and  re^ed  by 
boat  to  New  York  newspapers,  where  they  were  published  under 
a  head  similar  to  that  used  by  the  Baltimore  papers. 

When  the  telegraph  came  to  be  used  in  newspaper  offices  out- 
side the  cities  on  the  Atlantic  Coast,  it  was  employed,  strange 
to  say,  not  so  much  to  give  the  news  as  to  indicate  where  it  might 
be  found  in  the  exchanges  coming  by  mail.  Murat  Halstead  has 
told  how,  when  working  on  a  Cincinnati  paper  in  the  early  fifties, 
he  would  go  down  to  the  depot  at  one  o'clock  in  the  morning, 
wait  for  the  train,  ride  on  the  mail  wagon  to  the  post-office, 
snatch  the  copies  of  the  newspapers  from  New  York,  Philadel- 
phia, and  Baltimore,  and  then  rush  to  his  newspaper  office  where 
he  would  slash  out  with  the  scissors  the  items  to  which  his  atten- 


MEXICAN  WAR  TO  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD     275 

tion  had  been  called  by  telegrams.  As  fast  as  he  cut  them  out  he 
handed  them  to  printers,  who  possibly  had  been  standing  around 
idle  for  more  than  an  hour.  In  those  days  printers  were  paid  for 
the  amount  of  copy  they  set  and  not  for  the  amount  of  time  they 
put  in  at  the  plant.  Competition,  however,  soon  forced  the 
publishers  of  newspapers  to  pay  the  telegraph  charges  for 
brief  bulletins  of  important  but  late  news. 

TAX  ON  VIRGINIA   NEWSPAPERS 

In  Virginia  during  most  of  the  decade  from  1840  to  1850  it  was 
the  practice  of  the  General  Assembly  of  that  State  to  pass  annu- 
ally an  act  "  imposing  taxes  for  the  support  of  the  Government." 
From  1843  to  1848,  inclusive,  this  act  contained  the  following 
provision:  "Upon  every  printing  press  of  newspapers  taxed  the 
amount  charged  per  annum  for  a  subscription  to  the  highest 
priced  paper  that  may  issue  from  such  press :  Provided,  however, 
That  no  press  shall  pay  a  higher  tax  than  ten  dollars."  The 
revenue  thus  derived  by  the  State  from  its  tax  on  newspapers 
ranged  from  three  hundred  and  eleven  dollars  for  the  year  end- 
ing September  30,  1843,  to  three  hundred  and  fifty-five  dollars 
for  the  year  ending  September  30,  1848.  The  Act  of  1849  did  not 
impose  any  newspaper  tax.  So  far  as  can  be  learned,  Virginia 
was  the  only  State  to  levy  a  tax  on  newspapers  during  the 
nineteenth  century.  In  fact,  the  only  other  direct  tax,  either 
Federal  or  State,  was  that  levied  by  the  Government  during  the 
War  of  the  States,  and  this  exempted  many  newspapers  and 
applied  only  to  the  gross  receipts  from  advertising  and  was  de- 
signed to  provide  internal  revenue  to  "support  the  Government 
and  pay  interest  on  the  public  debt." 

PRESS  ASSOCIATIONS  OF  PERIOD 

During  the  middle  of  the  fourth  decade  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury, there  were  three  cooperative  associations  to  gather  the 
marine  news  of  New  York.  The  first  and  most  important  of 
these  was  the  one  composed  of  the  blanket  sheets,  The  Courier 
and  Enquirer  and  The  Journal  of  Commerce;  the  second  was  com- 
posed of  The  Express,  The  Mercantile  Advertiser,  and  The  Ga- 
zette; the  third,  of  The  Commercial  Advertiser,  The  Evening  Star, 
and  The  American. 


276       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Ten  years  later,  in  October,  1856,  the  General  News  Associa- 
tion nf  f.hft  City  nf  ^w  Vnrlr  wag  nrpramgpH  wJ+.h  f^rsrH  HQ|, 

loc^foTfhe  Journal  of  Commerce,  as  its  president,  and  Moses  S. 
Beech,  of  The  New  York  Sun,  as  secretary.  The  other  newspapers 
which  were  charter  members  of  the  Association  were  The  Ex- 
press, The  Herald,  The  Tribune,  The  Courier  and  Enquirer,  and 
The  Times.  The  purpose  of  this  Association  was  to  reduce  the 
cost  in  collecting  and  receiving  the  news.  Hallock  remained  presi- 
dent of  the  Association  until  1861,  when  he  was  succeeded  by 
D.  H.  Craig,  who  had  already  achieved  distinction  with  his 
press  pigeons  first  at  Baltimore  and  then  at  Boston.  Designed 
at  first  to  gather  news  for  its  New  York  members,  the  Associa- 
tion gradually  extended  its  service  to  take  in  papers  in  other 
cities.  It  came  to  be  known  as  the  Associated  Press  of  New  York, 
though  it  never  organized  or  incorporated  under  any  such  title. 

EDITOKIAL  GIANTS 

During  the  decade  of  18§Q=£0  the  editorial  policy  reached 
its  highest  development  in  the  matter  •orintuienceT''  True,  this 
periocTwalTbne  of  the  most  pivotaTintfie history  of  the  American 
Republic.  In  it  the  Democratic  Party  began  to  organize.  The 
Whig  Party  was  wiped  out,  and  the  Republican  Party  was 
born.  The  newspaper,  both  in  the  North  and  the  South,  had  an 
opportunity  to  discuss  a  question  which  was  destined  later  al- 
most to  split  the  Republic  into  two  Governments.  In  the  North 
especially,  the  editorial  influence  was  felt  where  there  was  almost 
universal  opposition  to  the  spread  of  slavery.  Such  a  great 
moral  issue  naturally  brought  out  editorials  of  unusual  strength. 
Of  these,  possibly  special  mention  should  be  made  of  those  of 
Greeley  in  The  New  York  Tribune;  those  of  Webb  in  The  New 
York  Courier  and  Enquirer;  those  of  Forney  in  The  Philadelphia 
Press;  those  of  Bowles  in  The  Springfield  Republican;  those  of 
Medill  in  The  Chicago  Tribune;  those  of  Raymond  in  The  Neiu 
York  Times;  those  of  Schouler  in  The  Cincinnati  Gazette;  those  of 
Bryant  in  The  Evening  Post;  and  those  of  Weed  in  The  Albany 
Evening  Journal.  In  this  connection  a  remark  of  Horace  White, 
while  editor  of  The  New  York  Evening  Post,  should  be  quoted  on 
the  value  of  the  editorial  page:  he  once  asserted  that  "a  news- 


MEXICAN  WAR  TO  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD      277 

paper  which  merely  inked  over  a  certain  amount  of  white  paper 
each  day  might  be  a  good  collector  of  news,  it  might  be  suc- 
cessful as  a  business  venture,  but  that  it  could  leave  no  mark 
upon  its  time  and  could  have  no  history. " 

LABOR   CONDITIONS   IN   BACK   OFFICE 

From  the  time  of  the  first  strike  in  the  office  of  Rivington's 
Gazette  during  the  Revolution,  down  to  as  late  as  1850,  labor 
conditions  in  newspaper  offices  were  far  from  satisfactory.  Most 
of  the  trouble  between  the  newspaper  and  its  employees  came 
from  the  fact  that  the  men  who  put  the  items  into  type  were 
paid  for  the  amount  of  work  they  did  and  not  for  the  amount  of 
time  they  spent  in  the  composing-room.  The  men  who  worked 
on  the  morning  newspapers  especially  complained,  with  con- 
siderable justification,  about  the  irregularity  of  their  time.  Local 
news  and  items  clipped  from  the  exchanges  were  usually  in  type  by 
midnight.  There  was  always  the  possibility,  however,  in  the  case 
of  seaboard  cities  that  some  ship  bringing  important  intelligence 
from  abroad  might  dock  at  a  wharf  late  in  the  evening  and  the 
newspapers  must  be  prepared  to  meet  just  such  an  emergency. 
Printers  could  either  hang  around  the  office  or  they  could  go 
home  only  to  be  aroused  from  their  slumbers  by  the  office  devil, 
who  came  with  orders  to  hasten  to  the  office  in  order  that  the 
latest  intelligence  be  put  in  the  morning  issue.  There  was  no 
uniformity  in  the  price  which  individual  papers  paid  their  print- 
ers, although  the  morning  papers,  because  of  night  work,  were 
compelled  to  pay  more  on  the  average  to  their  printers  than  the 
evening  journals.  In  order  to  remedy  these  conditions,  unions 
were  organized,  and  by  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century 
they  did  much  to  improve  the  conditions  of  the  printers  em- 
ployed on  city  papers.  Editors  at  the  start  were  not  debarred 
from  membership  in  these  unions.  /Horace  Greeley,  for  ex- 
ample, was  the  first  president  of  the  New  York  Printers'  Union, 
which  was  established  in  January,  1850.  Greeley,  in  fact,  used 
his  trenchant  pen  in  numerous  editorials  to  improve  working 
conditions  among  New  York  printers.  >  When  The  Journal  of 
Commerce  and  other  New  York  papers  criticized  the  attempt  to 
establish  a  uniform  scale  of  wages  throughout  the  city,  it  was 


278       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Greeley  who  took  up  the  cudgels  for  the  printers  and  defended 
their  course  to  obtain  a  "fair  day's  pay  for  a  fair  day's  work." 
Newspapers  which  did  not  accept  the  established  scale  for  the 
employment  of  men  were  called  "rat  papers,"  a  term  that  is  still 
applied  to  newspapers  which  have  open  shops. 

PUTTING   THE   TYPE   ON  THE   CYLINDER 

The  penny  papers  with  their  large  editions  demanded  fast 
presses.  To  meet  this  increased  requirement  Robert  M.  Hoe, 
who  followed  his  father  as  the  head  of  the  firm  of  R.  Hoe  & 
Company  tried  numerous  schemes,  but  finally  found  that  the 
way  to  print  rapidly  was  to  take  the  type  from  the  flat  bed  and 
put  it  on  the  cylinder.  This  was  done  by  making  beds  in  the 
cylinder  —  one  for  each  page  of  type.  The  column  rules,  which 
held  the  type  in  place,  were  shaped  like  the  letter  V,  and  thus 
acted  as  a  wedge  when  the  thin  edge  was  pushed  toward  the 
axis  of  the  cylinder.  "  Projecting  tongues  sliding  in  rebated 
grooves  cut  in  the  cylinder"  held  the  rules  in  place.  The  type  did 
not  fall  out  when  the  page  forms  were  locked  or  fastened  with 
usual  care.  Around  the  large  type  cylinder  were  grouped  four 
impression  cylinders  at  which  sheets  were  supplied  to  the  press 
—  usually  by  boys.  The  first  press  with  type  on  its  cylinder 
was  made  for  The  Philadelphia  Ledger  in  1846.  Its  capacity  per 
hour  was  about  eight  thousand  papers  printed  on  one  side  only. 

As  newspapers  increased  their  demands,  Hoe  simply  added 
more  impression  cylinders  until  as  many  as  ten  were  grouped 
about  the  type  cylinder.  The  hourly  output  of  the  ten-cylinder 
rotary  type-revolving  press  was  in  the  neighborhood  of  twenty 
thousand  copies  half-printed.  America  had  now  taken  the  lead 
in  the  manufacture  of  fast  presses  —  a  lead  which  it  has  never 
lost.  To  show  how  far  England  was  behind,  The  London  Times, 
two  years  after  a  rotary  press  had  been  in  successful  operation 
in  Philadelphia,  said,  in  an  article  in  December,  1848,  "no 
art  of  packing  could  make  the  type  adhere  to  a  cylinder 
revolving  around  a  horizontal  axis  and  thereby  aggravating 
centrifugal  impulse  by  the  intrinsic  weight  of  the  metal." 
Nevertheless,  Hoe  had  already  accomplished  this  very  thing. 
Subsequently  The  London  Times  ordered  from  Hoe  two  of  his 


MEXICAN  WAR  TO  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD     279 

ten-cylinder  rotary  presses.  The  Lords  of  the  Privy  Council, 
extending  the  patent  of  this  press,  spoke  of  it  as  one  of  "the 
greatest  steps  ever  made  in  the  printing  art.'1 

LOSS   OF  CUTS   IN   ADVERTISEMENTS 

When  Hoe  took  the  type  from  a  flat  bed  and  put  it  on  a  re- 
volving cylinder,  he  changed  completely  the  appearance  of  the 
advertising  columns.  Making  the  type  secure  in  the  column- 
wide  "  turtles"  which  curved  around  the  cylinder  had  presented 
mechanical  difficulties  which  were  overcome.  To  make  large 
cuts  adhere  to  the  cylinder  during  revolution  was  so  intricate 
that  publishers  of  newspapers  charged  prohibitive  prices  for 
such  advertising.  Advertisements  wider  than  one  column 
necessitated  the  breaking  of  the  rule  and  when  this  was  done 
an  extra  charge  was  made.  The  use  of  large  type  was  discour- 
aged the  same  as  that  of  cuts.  Advertisers,  however, were  allowed 
to  use  large  letters  made  up  of  smaller  letters  of  the  regular  type. 
The  letters  were  of  course  identical  save  for  the  size:  the  large 
"A"  consisted  only  of  smaUer  "A's";  the  large  "B"  only  of 
smaller  "  B's,"  etc.  So  common  did  this  practice  become  that 
even  after  forms  were  stereotyped  and  solid  letters  of  any  size 
could  be  used,  manufacturers  of  type  continued  to  cast  the 
"logotypes."  With  the  practical  abolition  of  cuts  and  heavy 
block-face  type  the  newspapers  became  much  neater  in  typo- 
graphical appearance.  Occasionally  advertisers  using  space  wider 
than  a  column  would  allow  the  rules  to  show  rather  than  to  pay 
the  extra  charge  —  much  to  the  annoyance  of  readers.  Adver- 
tising copy  received  late  was  frequently  set  up  in  this  way. 

SLAVERY  DISCUSSION  STARTED 

Editorial  discussion  of  slavery  first  began  to  appear  during  the 
Administration  of  Andrew  Jackson,  but  most  papers,  even  in 
the  North,  were  inclined  to  leave  the  matter  alone  until  dis- 
cussion of  some  compromise  at  Washington  brought  the  matter 
before  the  people.  Attention  has  already  been  called  to  the  fact 
that  newspapers  like  The  New  York  Times  were  not  disposed  to 
interfere  with  the  peculiar  institutions  of  other  States.  The  few 
abolition  journals  which  appeared  attracted  little  attention 


280       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

until  their  contents  were  reprinted  in  other  papers  in  connection 
with  the  discussion  of  legislative  halls.  A  paper,  however,  which 
carried  a  torch  was  The  Telegraph  published  at  Washington. 
This  journal  in  some  way  secured  the  reports  of  the  Abolition 
Society  of  New  York,  —  so  small  at  the  time  that  it  had  at- 
tracted but  little  attention  from  the  New  York  press,  —  and 
then  by  publishing  the  most  offensive  passages  persuaded  what 
papers  it  could  that  the  North  was  seeking  to  deprive  the 
planters  of  their  slaves  without  remuneration.  It  seemed  to  take 
special  pride  in  setting  fire  to  secession  papers. 

When  Douglas  introduced  the  Kansas-Nebraska  Bill  of 
1854,  which  provided  that  the  inhabitants  of  these  States  should 
decide  whether  slavery  should  be  permitted  within  their  bound- 
aries, he  aroused  again  a  press  discussion  which  to  a  certain 
extent  had  been  quieted  by  the  compromise  of  Clay  and  the 
passage  of  the  Fugitive  Slave  Law.  The  bill  was  denounced  by 
the  press,  not  only  in  the  South,  but  also  in  the  North.  The  Eve- 
ning Post,  for  example,  asserted  at  the  time  that  out  of  some 
hundred  newspapers  which  reached  the  editor's  desk  almost  all 
were  in  condemnation  of  the  bill.  After  it  had  become  a  law  its 
sponsor,  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  became  the  target  of  editorial  pens 
all  over  the  country:  papers,  regardless  of  party  affiliations,  de- 
nounced him  everywhere;  even  in  his  own  State  of  Illinois,  his 
personal  friends  found  it  necessary  to  establish,  at  Chicago,  in 
1854,  The  Times  as  a  political  organ  to  defend  the  attacks  brought 
against  him. 

The  Kansas-Nebraska  Bill,  repudiating  as  it  did  the  Missouri 
Compromise,  had  a  national  effect  upon  the  press  of  the  period. 
Its  most  immediate  effect,  however,  was  felt  in  Kansas.  The 
Free-Soilers  started  bands  of  immigrants  from  New  England  to 
Kansas.  Border  Ruffians,  determined  to  make  it  a  slave  State, 
camped  temporarily  in  the  Territory.  Both  sections  had  their 
papers  which  did  much  to  promote  trouble  and  to  cause  Kansas 
to  lose  some  of  its  best  blood.  * 

This  chapter  of  Kansas  history  may  almost  be  read  in  the  titles 
of  the  papers  established  there  during  the  second  hah"  of  the 
decade  1850-60.  (See  "  Beginnings  in  Kansas.")  At  Atchi- 
son,  The  Squatter  Sovereign  was  started  on  February  3,  1855;  at 


MEXICAN  WAR  TO  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD     281 

Topeka,  The  Kansas  Freeman,  on  July  4,  1855;  at  Le  Compton, 
The  New  Era,  on  September  26,  1855;  at  Prairie  City,  The 
Freeman's  Champion,  on  June  25,  1857;  at  Sumner,  The  Sumner 
Gazette,  on  September  12,  1857.  At  Lawrence,  settled  for  the 
most  part  by  Free-Soilers  from  Massachusetts,  four  papers, 
every  one  of  which  had  its  office  destroyed  by  Border  Ruffians, 
were  established  during  these  fateful  years.  Of  these  papers  the 
most  important  was  The  Herald  of  Freedom,  the  first  issue  of 
which,  though  dated  at  Wakarusa,  Kansas,  October  21,  1854, 
was  printed  in  Pennsylvania:  the  second  was  published  at 
Lawrence  on  January  6,  1855.  Second  was  The  Kansas-Free 
State,  begun  in  January,  1855.  On  May  21,  1856,  when  Border 
Ruffians  attacked  Lawrence,  they  dumped  the  press,  type,  books, 
papers,  etc.,  of  The  Free  State  into  the  street  and  did  practi- 
cally the  same  thing  for  The  Herald  of  Freedom,  but  in  addition 
set  the  building  on  fire.  This  act  of  the  Border  Ruffians  stirred 
up  the  press  of  the  North  so  that  a  subscription  for  money  with 
which  to  purchase  new  types  and  press  for  the  owners  of  The 
Herald  was  started  by  the  Chicago  press,  headed  by  The  Chicago 
Tribune,  The  Chicago  Journal,  and  The  Staats-Zeitung.  Horace 
Greeley,  of  The  New  York  Tribune,  also  helped  to  raise  money 
for  the  enterprise. 

In  the  next  period  Lawrence  had  a  practical  repetition  of  this 
act  of  violence.  The  Kansas  Tribune,  which  had  been  started  at 
Lawrence  on  January  5, 1855,  in  removing  to  Topeka  in  Novem- 
ber of  that  year,  escaped  the  violence  of  the  Border  Ruffians.  The 
Tribune,  however,  again  returned  to  Lawrence  on  January  1, 
1863.  After  the  offices  of  The  Herald  of  Freedom  and  The  Kansas 
Free  State  had  been  mobbed,  and  their  printing-plants  destroyed, 
their  place  was  taken  by  The  Lawrence  Republican,  established  on 
May  28,  1857.  Both  The  Tribune  and  The  Republican  suffered  a 
like  fate  on  August  21,  1863,  when  their  offices  were  destroyed, 
and  the  papers  suspended.  The  Tribune  was  revived  in  Novem- 
ber, 1863,  and  The  Republican  in  February,  1868,  but  these  re- 
vivals belong  to  another  period. 


282       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

SOUTHERN   PRESS   ON   SECESSION 

The  press  of  the  South,  save  a  few  "  bitter-enders,"  was  unusu- 
ally conservative,  in  spite  of  the  commonly  accepted  opinion, 
in  the  matter  of  secession.  About  three  hundred  journals  were 
received  in  exchange  from  below  the  Mason  and  Dixon  Line  by 
The  National  Intelligencer,  of  Washington:  of  these,  only  fifty 
were  for  the  Nashville  Convention.  The  New  York  Herald,  in 
commenting  on  this  fact,  remarked  that  some  of  these  fifty  were 
"  backing  down."  Both  the  Whig  and  the  Democratic  press  of 
the  South  were  continually  urging  their  readers  to  await  the 
results  v>A  compromising  measures.  The  Whig  journals  of  the 
South,  with  The  Richmond  Whig  as  a  leader,  were  strongly  op- 
posed to  secession.  The  Texas  Advertiser  once  recommended  that 
the  introduction  of  the  slavery  question  into  Congress  be  pun- 
ished with  expulsion.  The  Louisiana  Gazette  frequently  scouted 
the  idea  of  dissolution.  The  Raleigh  Press  begged  that  "if  we 
have  to  fight  for  liberty,  let  us  fight  with  the  Stars  and  Stripes." 
The  New  Orleans  Crescent  opposed  violence.  The  Memphis  Eagle 
even  went  so  far  as  to  characterize  the  peaceful  secession  of  a 
State  as  a  most  absurd  vagary.  The  Memphis  Inquirer  urged 
every  one  "  to  put  his  foot  on  disunion."  Such  newspapers  as  The 
Mobile  Advertiser,  The  New  Orleans  Bulletin,  The  Nashville 
Banner,  The  Natchez  Courier,  etc.,  warned  the  South  of  its 
dependence  upon  the  North,  and  suggested  that  before  any  dras- 
tic action  be  taken  the  South  should  be  made  independent  of 
"Yankee"  factories  for  the  manufacture  of  finished  products. 

On  the  other  hand,  a  few  papers  of  the  South  thought  they  saw 
the  approaching  conflict.  The  Savannah  Republican  again  and 
again  prophesied  that  civil  war  between  the  free  and  the  slave 
States  was  inevitable.  The  Abbevilk  Banner  asked  the  South  to 
rebuke  the  North  by  refusing  to  read  the  papers  of  the  latter 
even  if  they  were  cheaper.  The  Natchez  Free  Trader  boldly  re- 
commended secession  as  a  constitutional  and  safe  remedy  for 
the  wrongs  of  the  South.  The  Charleston  Mercury  asserted  that 
"the  tea  has  been  thrown  overboard"  and  that  "the  Revolution 
of  1860  has  been  initiated."  From  The  Hornet's  Nest  of  Charlotte, 
North  Carolina,  came  many  "stings"  for  the  North.  That  paper 


IIIIRIISIOX 

MERCURY 


EXTRA: 


Passed  unanimously  of  1.1A  o'clock,  /*.  . »/.   December 
2O/A,  I860. 

AJ¥  on m  >  t  > <  i 

To  dissolve  the  Union  between  the  State  of  South  Carolina  attd 
other  States  united  with  her  under  the  compact  entitled  "  The 
Constitution  of  the  United  States  of  America." 

We,  the  People  of  the  Slate  of  South  Carolina,  in  Convention  assembled,  do  declare  and  ordain,  and 
it  w  hereby  declared  and  ordained, 

That  the  Ordinance  adopted  by  us  in  Convention,  on  the  twenty-third  day  of  May,  in  the 
year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  seven  hundred  and  eighty-eight,  whereby  the  Constitution  of  {he 
United  States  of  America  was.  ratified,  and  also,  all  Acts  and  parts  of  Acts  of  the  GenenJ 
Assembly  of  this  State,  ratifying  amendments  of  the  said  Constitution,  are  hereby  repealed; 
and  that  the  union  now  subsisting  between  South  Carolina  And  other  States,  under  the  name  of 
'•  The  United  States  of  America,"  is  hereby  dissolved. 


THE 

UNION 


DISSOLVED! 

THE   EXTRA   IX   CHARLESTON    WHICH  ANNOUNCED 
THE   ORDINANCE   OF   SECESSION 

(Reduced) 


MEXICAN  WAR  TO  CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD     283 

went  so  far  as  to  publish  a  list  of  the  business  houses  in  the 
North  which  did  not  rally  to  the  support  of  the  South  and  asked 
editors  to  keep  this  list  standing  in  their  newspapers.  The 
suggestion  was  warmly  seconded  in  Atlanta  by  The  Southern 
Confederacy,  one  of  the  most  violent  secessionist  papers  of  the 
South.  The  secession  press  was  strongest  in  South  Carolina  and 
next  in  Mississippi. 

SEWARD   AND   GREELEY  AGAIN 

In  the  earlier  part  of  another  chapter  mention  was  made  of 
the  dissension  which  arose  between  Greeley  and  Seward,  partners 
in  several  newspaper  enterprises.  Greeley  had  another  grievance 
against  Seward :  when  the  Whig  Party  was  out  of  control  Greeley 
was  nominated  as  State  Printer,  but  when  at  the  next  election  the 
Whigs  were  successful  the  office  went  to  his  rival,  Henry  J.  Ray- 
mond, of  The  Times.  Greeley  took  this  very  much  to  heart,  as  it 
enabled  —  to  quote  his  own  words  —  "St.  John  to  show  his 
Times  as  the  organ  of  the  Whig  State  Administration."  Later, 
Raymond  was  nominated  on  the  Whig  ticket  for  Lieutenant- 
Governor  and  the  fight  for  his  election  was  left  by  Seward  to 
Greeley.  There  were  numerous  other  instances  where  Greeley 
thought  he  was  treated  unjustly  by  Seward.  The  story  has  al- 
ready been  told  how  Seward  pardoned  Webb,  the  editor  of 
The  Courier  and  Enquirer  —  a  paper  which  had  continually 
abused  Greeley. 

But  Greeley  waited  his  time  —  as  he  said  he  would.  His  day 
came  when  the  Republican  Party  met  at  Chicago  in  1860.  How 
Greeley  defeated  Seward  and  nominated  Lincoln  in  that  Con- 
vention has  been  told  so  often  that  no  repetition  is  necessary. 
Vanity  Fair,  the  cartoon  weekly  of  the  period,  told  it  in  wordless 
journalism  with  a  picture  entitled  "Et  Tu,  Greeley?"  with 
Seward  portrayed  as  Caesar,  Greeley,  of  The  New  York  Tribune, 
as  Brutus,  Raymond,  of  The  New  York  Times,  as  Marc  Antony, 
and  Blair,  of  The  Washington  Globe,  as  Casca.  By  way  of  repe- 
tition, Vanity  Fair  told  the  same  story  in  verse  (Brutus  Greeley 
speaking) :  — 

I  have  nipped  him  at  Chicago, 

I  have  made  my  Seward  wail, 
I  Ve  ordained  that  Uncle  Abram 
Shall  be  ridden  on  the  rail. 


284       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Did  he  think  that  I  forgave  him? 

Did  he  think  I  was  an  ass? 
Did  he  think  I  'd  love  my  enemies, 

And  let  the  occasion  pass? 

If  he  did  he  was  mistaken, 

And  I  guess  he  knows  it  now, 
For  I  nipped  him  at  Chicago, 

And  I  made  a  precious  row. 

I  was  slow  to  wrath  against  him, 

When  I  bore  defeat  and  pain, 
But  I  've  waited  for  him  patiently, 

And  I  did  n't  wait  in  vain. 

Now  they  swear  at  me,  the  vipers, 

But  they  swear  a  good  way  off, 
For  they  know  the  gallant  Greeley, 

At  the  best  of  them  will  scoff. 

And  they  know  he 's  used  to  swearing, 

(Tho'  it's  very  wrong  to  swear) 
So  they  curse  his  seedy  garments, 

And  they  blast  his  yellow  hair. 

But  little  cares  the  Greeley 

What  his  enemies  may  say, 
When  he  knows  the  grayhound  Seward, 

Is  a  dog  that's  had  his  day. 

With  the  nomination  of  Lincoln  came  the  close  of  this  period. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD 

1860—1865 

THE  nomination  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  due  in  part  to  the  activi- 
ties of  Horace  Greeley,  of  The  New  York  Tribune,  was  a  great 
surprise  to  the  Democratic  journals  of  the  North.  Amazed  at  the 
defeat  of  Seward,  who  was  the  logical  candidate,  they  did  all 
they  could  to  belittle  the  ability  of  Lincoln,  whom  they  repeat- 
edly referred  to  in  their  campaign  attacks  as  "Old  Uncle  Abe." 
The  Republican  papers,  on  the  other  hand,  promptly  came  to 
Lincoln's  support  and  spoke  of  him  as  "a  man  of  the  people" 
and  gave  him  the  name  of  "  Honest  Abe." 

After  the  election  of  Lincoln,  the  conservative  papers,  regard- 
less of  their  political  affiliations,  rallied  to  his  support.  Both 
The  St.  Louis  Democrat  and  The  Missouri  Republican  asked  that 
he  be  given  a  square  deal,  and  The  Washington  Star  asserted  that 
he  had  been  constitutionally  elected  and  that  his  elevation  to 
office  could  no  longer  be  resisted  save  by  naked  and  palpable 
revolution. 

THE   COPPERHEAD   PRESS 

Yet  in  the  North  there  were  newspapers  which  were  in  favor 
of  acceding  to  the  demands  of  the  South.  Even  The  New  York 
Tribune  advocated  letting  "the  erring  sisters  depart  in  peace," 
and  another  New  York  newspaper,  during  the  first  year  that 
Lincoln  was  President,  compiled  a  list  of  newspapers  in  the  free 
States  which  were  oppose^  to  what  is  called  the  "Present  Un- 
holy War."  The  New  York  World  went  so  far  as  to  say  that  Lin- 
coln's election  meant  that  the  Union  neither  would  be  restored 
nor  would  slavery  be  abolished.  Other  papers  encouraged  the 
South  to  persevere  and  condemned  the  North  for  using  arms 
to  force  States  to  remain  in  the  Union.  Northern  papers  opposed 
to  the  "Unholy  War"  came  to  be  known  as  the  "Copperhead 


286       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

press."  They  were  so  influential  that  they  greatly  hindered  the 
War  Department  in  its  activities  and  were  a  source  of  much 
encouragement  to  the  South,  but  they  possibly  did  the  greatest 
amount  of  harm  in  continually  opposing  the  issue  of  Treasury 
notes. 

EDITORIAL  ATTACKS   OF  STOREY 

Especially  savage  in  attacks  upon  the  paper  currency  of  the 
United  States  Government  was  The  Chicago  Times,  one  of  the 
foremost  leaders  of  the  CopperheaLcrpress :  it  repeatedly  spoke  of 
such  currency  as  the  paper  having  the  largest  circulation  of  any 
in  the  country,  and  every  decrease  in  the  value  was  hailed  as  a 
fulfillment  of  its  prophecy.  Its  editor  was  Wilbur  D.  Storey,  who 
adopted  an  editorial  policy  that  was  always  opposed  to  the  Union 
Government  and  later  became  so  seditious  that  General  Burn- 
side  suppressed  the  paper  for  two  days.  When  President  Lincoln, 
always  slow  to  wrath  and  tender  in  mercy,  learned  what  Burn- 
side  had  done,  he  revoked  the  order,  enforced  at  the  point  of 
the  bayonet,  and  allowed  The  Times  to  continue  publication. 
The  suppression,  instead  of  acting  as  a  restraint  upon  Storey, 
seemed  to  incense  him  all  the  more.  His  editorial  comments, 
more  seditious  than  ever,  caused  his  paper  to  be  known  as  "Old 
Storey's  Copperhead  Times"  and  brought  frequent  threats  of 
destruction  to  the  building  and  personal  violence  to  the  editor. 
His  editorial  rooms,  now  always  prepared  for  a  siege,  were 
equipped  with  loaded  muskets  and  hand-grenades,  and  had  a 
hose  so  attached  that  the  floor  might  instantly  be  flooded  with 
the  scalding  steam  and  boiling  water  from  the  boilers  of  the 
plant.  So  bitter  were  some  of  Storey's  editorial  comments  that 
when  reports  of  them  reached  various  regiments  in  service  in 
Union  lines,  soldiers  time  and  time  again  sent  word  that  upon 
their  return  from  the  war  they  were  going  to  destroy  The  Cop- 
perhead Times  —  threats,  however,  which  were  never  carried 
out. 

" TRIBUNE"  DRAFT  RIOTS 

The  plant  of  The  New  York  Tribune  also  narrowly  escaped  de- 
struction —  but  for  quite  a  different  reason.  For  some  time 


CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD  287 

before  the  battle  of  Bull  Run,  Horace  Greelcy  kept  the  following 
paragraph  standing  on  the  editorial  page  of  his  Tribune:  - 

The  Nation's  War  Cry.  Forward  to  Richmond!  Forward  to  Rich- 
mond! The  Rebel  Congress  must  not  be  allowed  to  meet  there  on 
the  twentieth  of  July!  By  that  date  the  place  must  be  held  by  the 
National  Army! 

This  call  on  the  part  of  Greeley  for  an  immediate  advance  on 
Richmond  undoubtedly  had  something  to  do  with  the  defeat  at 
Bull  Run.  At  the  outbreak  of  the  war  The  Herald,  seeming  a 
little  too  lukewarm  in  its  allegiance  to  the  cause  of  the  North, 
had  been  most  bitterly  and  incessantly  criticized  by  The  Tribune. 
After  the  defeat  at  Bull  Run  The  Herald  promptly  denounced 
The  Tribune  and  its  editor  as  being  one  of  the  immediate  causes 
of  the  disaster,  and  indicated  that  the  time  would  come  when  the 
people  would  find  it  expedient  to  hang  Greeley  upon  a  lamp- 
post, because  he  poisoned  and  killed  the  Republic  with  aboli- 
tion sentiment.  Undoubtedly  the  attack  of  The  Herald  had 
something  to  do  with  the  assault  upon  the  building  of  The  Trib- 
une during  the  draft  riots,  when  on  Monday,  July  13,  1863,  a 
mob  advanced  against  The  Tribune  with  the  cry:  "Down  with 
The  Tribune!  Down  with  the  old  white  coat  what  thinks  a 
nayger  as  good  as  an  Irishman. "  In  its  attacks  on  The  Tribune 
the  mob  succeeded  in  destroying  the  furniture  on  the  first  floor 
where  all  gas-burners  were  twisted  off;  it  battered  down  the 
doors  and  windows  after  it  had  started  a  fire  in  the  center  in  the 
hope  of  destroying  the  plant.  The  building,  however,  was  saved 
by  the  arrival  of  one  hundred  policemen  with  orders  to  "Hit 
their  temples,  strike  hard,  take  no  prisoners."  The  instructions 
were  followed:  twenty-two  were  killed;  scores  taken  away  se- 
verely wounded.  A  heavy  downpour  of  rain  suddenly  broke 
over  the  mob  and  scattered  it  even  faster  than  the  charge  of  the 
bluecoats.  By  the  next  day  The  Tribune  building  had  been 
transformed  into  an  arsenal;  guns  protruded  from  the  second- 
story  windows,  a  hose  had  been  connected  with  the  steam  boiler 
in  the  basement,  and  arrangements  had  been  made  to  drop 
shells  on  any  attacking  party.  These  preparations  undoubtedly 
prevented  a  second  attack,  for  on  Wednesday  morning  The 


288       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Tribune  announced  editorially  that  it  was  prepared  for  any  en- 
counter and  warned  rioters  of  what  would  follow  in  an  attack 
upon  its  building.  Greeley  always  insisted  that  the  attack  on 
The  Tribune  building  was  the  turning-point  in  the  war  and 
boldly  asserted  that  if  the  raid  had  not  been  successfully  re- 
sisted it  would  have  swept  all  over  the  North  and  broken  the 
Union  into  fragments. 

During  this  same  terrible  riot  week  of  July,  1863,  proprietors  of 
The  Times  in  New  York  adopted  strenuous  measures  that  its 
plant  might  be  in  a  prepared  state  for  defense.  They  put  a 
revolving  cannon  in  the  publication  office  and  laid  in  a  store  of 
rifles  with  which  to  ward  off  any  invasion  by  the  mob.  Thus 
defended,  The  Times  did  not  hesitate  to  send  out  red-hot  shots 
in  its  editorial  columns  headed,  "  Crush  the  Mob."  It  turned 
its  editorial  guns  not  only  on  the  mob,  but  also  on  the  other  New 
York  newspapers  which  sought  to  characterize  the  riots  as  "re- 
bukes of  the  laboring  men."  "These  are  libels,"  said  The  Times, 
"that  ought  to  have  paralyzed  the  fingers  that  penned  them." 
The  conclusion  of  the  editorial  was,  "Give  them  grape,  and 
plenty  of  it."  Because  of  its  determined  stand  on  the  matter  of 
the  riot,  The  Times  also  came  to  be  somewhat  severely  criticized. 

GENERALS  VS.   CORRESPONDENTS 

General  McClellan  on  August  5,  1861,  invited  the  war  cor- 
respondents to  meet  him  for  consultation  about  handling  war 
news.  At  this  meeting  a  resolution  was  passed,  requesting  the 
Government  "to  afford  the  representatives  of  the  press  facilities 
for  obtaining  and  immediately  transmitting  all  information  suit- 
able for  publication,  particularly  as  touching  engagements  with 
the  enemy."  But  correspondents  in  their  desire  to  be  first  with 
the  news  were  so  careless  at  first  that  the  Union  generals  found  it 
necessary  to  place  numerous  restrictions  upon  publishing  mili- 
tary intelligence.  General  Rosecrans  complained  that  the  army 
in  occupation  of  Western  Virginia  was  handicapped  by  having 
the  strength  and  movements  of  his  troops  made  public  in  the 
press  so  that  all  advantages  of  secrecy  of  concentration  and 
surprise  failed  at  critical  moments.  In  contrast,  he  said,  the 
newspapers  of  the  South  never  betrayed  the  movements  of  the 


CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD  289 

Confederate  armies.  Later,  General  McClellan,  in  a  dispatch  to 
the  War  Department,  called  attention  to  the  violation  by  news- 
papers of  the  agreement  not  to  publish,  "either  as  editorial  or 
as  correspondence,  any  description,  from  any  point  of  view,  any 
matter  that  might  furnish  aid  or  comfort  to  the  enemy,"  and 
suggested  that  editors  be  held  responsible  for  its  infraction. 
Major-General  Benjamin  F.  Butler,  in  a  communication  ad- 
dressed to  the  newspaper  correspondent  connected  with  the 
Army  of  the  James,  asserted  that,  while  he  had  never  interfered 
with  the  quality  or  the  quantity  of  the  communications  of  the 
correspondents,  he  wanted  them  to  speak  only  of  acts  done  and 
not  of  movements  in  preparation  or  in  progress,  because  in 
forty-eight  hours  at  the  farthest  the  enemy  had  such  news  in 
printed  form.  Offering  to  put  at  the  disposal  of  the  correspond- 
ents many  public  and  official  documents,  he  cautioned  them  es- 
pecially against  describing  the  movements  of  officers  of  high  rank 
mentioned  therein.  Major-General  Foster,  in  command  of  the 
Department  of  North  Carolina,  complained  in  September,  1862, 
that  The  New  York  Evening  Post  had  betrayed  the  numbers 
and  positions  of  his  troops  and  asserted  that  "such  information 
from  our  friends  was  more  injurious  than  that  gained  by  the 
Rebel  spies. " 

SUSPENSION  OF  SOUTHEKN  SHEETS 

Union  generals  did  not  hesitate  to  suppress  any  newspaper  in 
the  South  whenever  they  thought  such  papers  were  guilty  of 
treason.  In  New  Orleans,  for  example,_T7ie  Bee,  The  Delta,  and 
The  Cresj&ti  were  suppressed  at  various  times.  Northern  gen- 
erals when  they  suspended  a  newspaper  occasionally  allowed  a 
continuation  of  the  sheet  under  the  editorial  supervision  of  war 
correspondents  from  the  North.  Such  was  the  case  when  General 
Wallace  suspended  The  Daily  Argus,  of  Memphis,  for  publishing 
a  "fake"  item  about  the  capture  or  umcmnati  by  Confederate 
troops.  He  put  the  paper  into  the  hands  of  A.  G.  Richardson, 
a  correspondent  of  The  New  York  Tribune,  and  Thomas  W. 
Knox,  a  correspondent  of  The  New  York  Herald.  In  other  cases, 
where  newspapers  published  editorials  in  "an  incendiary  or 
treasonable  spirit,"  the  resignation  of  the  writer  of  the  editorial 


290       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

was  demanded  under  threat  of  total  suspension.  General  Grant, 
incensed  at  an  editorial  entitled  "  Mischief-Makers,"  in  The 
Avalanche,  of  Memphis,  ordered  that  either  the  paper  suspend 
or  the  writer  of  the  offensive  editorial  resign.  Jeptha  Folkes 
accordingly  withdrew  from  the  editorial  staff  and  The  Avalanche 
continued  for  a  short  time,  only  to  suspend  a  little  later  for 
other  reasons  until  the  war  was  over. 

CONDITIONS   OF  REVIVAL 

The  following  editorial  notice  from  The  Evening  Whig,  the  only 
paper  to  make  its  appearance  in  Richmond  after  Evacuation 
Day,  set  forth  the  conditions  under  which  publication  of  a  news- 
paper was  generally  permitted  by  Federal  authorities :  — 

The  publication  of  The  Whig  is  resumed  this  afternoon,  with  the  con- 
sent of  the  military  authorities.  The  editor,  and  all  who  heretofore  con- 
trolled its  columns,  have  taken  their  departure.  The  proprietor  and  one 
attache  of  the  recent  editorial  corps  remain.  The  former  has  had  a  con- 
ference with  General  Shepley,  the  Military  Governor,  who  has  assented 
to  the  publication  of  the  paper  on  conditions  which  will  be  cheerfully 
and  faithfully  complied  with.  The  Whig  will  therefore  be  issued  here- 
after as  a  Union  paper.  The  sentiments  of  attachment  to  our  "whole 
country,"  which  formerly  characterized  it  as  a  journal  will  again  find 
expression  in  its  columns,  and  whatever  influence  it  may  have  for 
the  restoration  of  the  national  authority  will  be  exerted. 

As  soon  as  practicable  a  full  and  efficient  editorial  force  will  be 
organized.  For  the  present  we  ask  the  indulgence  of  our  readers.  We 
will  do  the  best  we  can  under  existing  circumstances,  promising  a 
daily  improvement  in  the  variety  and  interest  of  the  contents  of  the 
paper,  until  we  shall  make  The  Whig  commend  itself  to  the  favor  and 
support  of  all  persons  loyal  to  the  Government  of  the  United  States. 

The  terms  cannot,  as  yet,  be  definitely  fixed.  We  shall  commence 
with  such  charge,  in  Federal  currency,  as  we  conceive  to  be  fair  and 
reasonable.  In  a  short  time  we  will  resume  the  issue  of  a  double  sheet. 

CENSORSHIP   OF  THE   PRESS 

General  Rosecrans  has  mentioned  that  the  papers  of  the  South 
seldom  betrayed  the  movements  of  Confederate  troops  in  such 
a  way  as  to  give  valuable  information  to  the  North.  This  con- 
dition was  due  to  the  fact  that  most  of  the  papers  in  that  section 
of  the  country  received  their  war  news  through  an  official  press 


CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD  291 

association.  By  means  of  this  organization  the  Confederacy 
was  better  able  to  control  what  appeared  in  the  newspapers 
than  was  the  Government  at  Washington,  in  spite  of  its  censor- 
ship. 

During  the  early  part  of  the  war,  Washington  officials  made 
several  blunders  in  adopting  too  stringent  measures  to  prevent 
the  publishing  of  news  which  might  help  the  army  of  the  South. 
The  papers  if*  the  larger  cities  were  repeatedly  informed  by  tele- 
graph that  nothing  whatever  in  regard  to  military  movements 
would  be  allowed  to  come  over  the  wires.  This  threat  was  never 
fully  carried  out,  but  a  censor  was  put  in  the  telegraph  office  at 
Washington  whose  duty  it  was  to  inspect  all  news  dispatches  and 
to  suppress  any  communication  which  he  deemed  inexpedient 
to  publish.  To  deceive  the  generals  of  the  Confederacy  false 
reports  must  have  been  circulated :  Henry  J.  Raymond,  of  The 
New  York  Times,  complained  bitterly  in  an  editorial  in  his 
paper  that  when  on  the  night  of  the  battle  of  Bull  Run  he  had 
placed  in  the  telegraph  office  a  "perfectly  accurate  statement  of 
the  result,"  derived  from  personal  observation,  the  Govern- 
ment Agent  refused  to  allow  the  account  to  be  sent  to  The  Times, 
and  instead  reported  that  the  Union  army  had  achieved  a  vic- 
tory. So  much  dissatisfaction  resulted,  on  account  of  the  cen- 
sorship, that  a  change  was  made,  with  a  result  that  greater 
freedom  for  the  expression  of  truth  was  given  to  the  dispatches 
and  additional  facilities  were  provided  by  the  War  Department 
for  the  gathering  of  news  by  correspondents  in  the  Union  army. 

NEWS  FROM  WASHINGTON 

The  assertion  was  frequently  made  that  The  Tribune,  because 
of  the  part  it  had  played  in  nominating  Lincoln,  was  granted 
special  privileges  in  the  matter  of  publication  of  items,  issued  by 
various  departments  at  Washington.  The  truth  of  this  charge 
was  never  proved,  except  that  correspondents  for  that  paper  were 
possibly  more  energetic  in  calling  on  the  various  members  of  the 
War  Cabinet.  The  policy  of  giving  items  to  the  newspaper  cor- 
respondent who  had  called  first  created  so  much  disturbance  and 
ill-feeling  that  arrangements  were  made  whereby  the  news  from 
all  departments  was  turned  over  to  a  special  newspaper  repre- 


292       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

sentative,  who,  in  turn,  supplied  the  items  to  all  papers.  The 
most  practical  way  of  carrying  out  this  scheme  was  to  select 
the  official  representative  of  the  Associated  Press  at  Washington 
and  he  became  the  buffer  between  newspapers  and  Government 
officials.  This  change  in  the  matter  of  Government  publicity 
proved  more  satisfactory  and  seemed  to  please  the  press,  save 
the  local  representatives  at  Washington,  who  suffered  some 
delay  and  a  little  more  expense  by  the  new  method.  They 
appealed  to  President  'Lincoln,  who,  in  turn,  passed  their  request 
along  to  Secretary  Stanton  with  this  note:  — 

Hon.  Secretary  of  War:  I  am  appealed  to  by  the  proprietors  of  papers 
here  because  they  have  to  get  telegraphed  back  to  them  from  New 
York,  matter  which  goes  from  the  War  Department.  Might  not  this 
be  avoided  without  harm  or  inconvenience  in  any  way? 

This  was  done  and  the  New  York  papers  were  no  longer  to 
be  the  first  publishers  of  Washington  news. 

TREATMENT  OF   NEWS 

During  the  War  of  the  States,  the  news,  both  in  its  siibj^nt" 

f ,  was  so  modern  that  no  special 
srSce  needs  to  be  taken  for  the  discussion  ot  this  topic.  In  the 
South,  however,  one  peculiarity  will  be  noticed.  After  South 
Carolina  seceded  from  the  Union,  the  papers  of  that  State  pub- 
lished all  items  from  the  North  under  the  head  of  "  Foreign  In- 
telligence." Secession  papers  in  other  States  later  followed  the 
example  set  by  South  Carolina.  Throughout  the  war  the  most 
important  news,  save  the  announcement  of  a  victory  or  of  a  de- 
feat, was  the  long  list  of  dead  or  wounded  soldiers  which  news- 
papers printed  in  small  type.  In  the  composition  of  headlines, 
however,  there  was  extreme  modesty:  seldom  were  they  wider 
than  one  column  and  frequently  they  were  the  same,  day  after 
day.  Northern  papers  frequently  used  as  a  standing  head  "The 
Rebellion,"  or,  set  in  smaller  letters,  "The  Great  Rebellion." 
Another  headline,  repeated  with  routine  monotony,  was  "Im- 
portant From  Washington."  After  the  battle  of  Bull  Run  a 
favorite  was  the  slight  variation,  "  Important  —  If  True."  The 
assassination  of  Lincoln  appreciably  increased  the  length,  but 
not  the  width,  of  newspaper  headlines. 


CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD  293 

In  the  matter  of  publishing  war  news,  possibly  the  most  im- 
portant papers  were  those  of  New  York,  which  still  had  an  ex- 
tensive circulation  out  of  the  city.  Honors  were  fairly  evenly 
divided  among  TheJHerald,  The  Times,  and  The  Tribune.  The 
first  had  already  learned  the  value  of  the  interview  in  connection 
with  John  Brown's  raid  at'Harei^Ferr^nd^ 


proved  of  the  utmost  value  in  getting  news  from  those  in  au- 
thority. Before  Sumter  was  fired  upon,  The  Herald  had  sent  to 
the  various  strategic  points  in  the  South  correspondents  with 
instructions  to  gather  Southern  newspapers,  to  collect  all  in- 
formation possible  about  Confederate  situations,  and  to  forward 
the  same  at  once  to  New  York.  The  data  thus  gathered  enabled 
The  Herald  as  hostilities  broke  out  to  publish  a  muster  roll  of  the 
Confederate  army  with  such  accuracy  that  a  leak  was  suspected 
in  the  War  Office  at  Richmond.  Several  times  The  Herald  pub- 
lished items  based  upon  such  accurate  information  that  rivals 
positively  asserted  that  The  Herald  was  in  collusion  with  Con- 
federate authorities.  In  the  number  of  war  correspondents  pos- 
sibly The  Herald  excelled.  Every  army  of  the  North  had  its 
Herald  headquarters  equipped  with  tents,  a  wagon  bearing  the 
name  of  the  paper,  and  several  attendants.  A  full  half-million 
dollars  was  spent  by  this  paper  on  its  war  correspondence.  The 
Times  had  for  its  representatives  equally  as  daring  men:  one  of 
them,  being  caught  in  an  unavoidable  delay  which  prevented 
his  presence  with  the  Union  forces,  deliberately  surrendered 
himself  to  the  Confederate  army  in  order  that  he  might  witness 
the  battle  from  the  opposite  side.  His  correspondence  was  un- 
usually interesting,  because,  being  written  inside  the  Confeder- 
ate lines,  it  gave  a  new  point  of  view  to  military  manceuvers. 
Correspondents  for  other  papers  outside  of  New  York,  however, 
achieved  distinction  because  of  the  excellence  of  their  reports. 
C.  H.  Ray,  of  The  Chicago  Tribune,  attracted  much  attention 
when  he  exposed  the  fake  correspondents  of  The  London  Times. 
(Incidentally,  it  may  be  said  that  much  of  the  correspondence 
which  appeared  in  English  papers  was  written  in  London  and 
was  based  upon  data  taken  from  Union  and  Confederate  news- 
papers.) The  London  Times  was  also  criticized  in  the  American 
press  because  of  the  insertion  of  an  item,  sent  by  its  New  York 


294       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

correspondent,  which  asserted  that  "  Lincoln  writes  English  that 
passes  muster  in  America,  but  that  would  not  be  tolerated  in  a 
British  school  for  young  men."  This  was  taken  as  a  direct  insult 
to  the  President  and  numerous  newspapers  which  had  criticized 
his  military  campaigns  came  at  once  to  his  defense  as  a  writer 
of  English. 

CLEVER  TRICKS  OF  CORRESPONDENTS 

Some  of  the  tricks  employed  by  war  correspondents  to  get 
news  through  the  lines  were  unusually  clever.  A  Union  soldier 
released  from  Libby  Prison  walked  into  the  office  of  a  New  York 
newspaper,  cut  a  button  from  his  military  coat,  and  handed  it 
to  the  man  in  charge  of  the  office.  When  the  button  was  pried 
apart  it  was  found  to  contain  a  letter  written  on  thin  tissue  paper 
from  a  war  correspondent  still  in  prison.  The  notes  of  the  letter, 
when  expanded,  made  a  long  article.  Another  correspondent 
wrote  an  account  on  thin  tissue  paper  which  he  wrapped  in  tin 
foil  and  put  inside  a  quid  of  tobacco.  This  he  gave  to  a  soldier 
about  to  be  exchanged.  When  the  latter  was  being  searched,  his 
mouth  was  examined,  but  in  preparation  for  such  an  investiga- 
tion he  had  taken  the  quid  from  his  mouth  and  no  one  thought 
enough  of  the  matter  to  look  at  the  tobacco.  The  correspon- 
dence, save  for  a  slight  yellow  stain  or  two,  reached  successfully 
a  Northern  newspaper.  Another  common  trick  was  to  rip  a 
pocketbook  apart,  insert  the  news-letter,  and  then  resew  the 
wallet.  In  a  similar  way,  news  items  were  literally  carried  on 
foot  by  insertion  in  the  leather  sole  of  a  shoe  of  the  messenger. 
In  the  attempts  of  various  correspondents  to  give  their  papers 
a  beat  on  various  encounters,  resort  was  made  to  all  sorts  of 
devices  to  hold  the  telegraph  wire:  on  one  occasion  a  corres- 
pondent instructed  the  operator  when  to  add  the  first  chapter 
of  Genesis  to  the  dispatch.  This  chapter  was  sufficiently  long 
to  delay  other  reports  until  his  newspaper  secured  a  lead  which 
enabled  it  to  be  first  on  the  street  with  the  report  of  the  battle. 

LEADING   EDITORIALS   OF  THE   PERIOD 

The  most  important  editorial  printed  during  the  Civil  War 
Period  was  probably  the  one  from  the  pen  of  Horace  Greeley. 


CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD  295 

It  appeared  in  The  New  York  Tribune  on  Wednesday,  August  20, 
1862f  and  was  entitled.  "The  Praver^of  Twenty  Millions."  In 
hfGreeley,  "  so  rely  disappointed  and  deeply  pained"  at  the  con- 
duct of  the  President,  severely  criticized  Lincoln  for  not  enforc- 
ing the  laws  of  Congress  and  for  not  doing  enough  for  the  negro. 
The  editorial  drew  from  Lincoln  a  characteristic  reply  which 
was  given  to  the  press  the  following  Saturday.  The  note  stated 
Lincoln's  position  on  the  slavery  question  so  clearly  and  so 
succinctly  that  in  the  North  there  was  hardly  a  newspaper  of 
any  importance  which  did  not  make  some  editorial  comment.  It 
changed  completely  the  attitude  of  many  papers  which  had 
been  previously  opposed  to  the  policies  of  the  Administration. 
Because  of  its  influence  on  the  journalism  of  the  period  the 
note,  as  given  to  the  press,  is  reprinted  in  full:  — - 

Dear  Sir:  I  have  just  read  yours  of  the  19th,  addressed  to  myself 
through  The  New  York  Tribune.  If  there  be  in  it  any  statements  or  as- 
sumptions of  fact  which  I  know  to  be  erroneous,  I  do  not  now  and  here 
controvert  them.  If  there  be  in  it  any  inferences  which  I  may  believe 
to  be  falsely  drawn,  I  do  not  now  and  here  argue  against  them.  If 
there  be  perceptible  in  it  an  impatient  and  dictatorial  tone,  I  waive 
it  in  deference  to  an  old  friend  whose  heart  I  have  always  supposed  to 
be  right. 

As  to  the  policy  I  "seem  to  be  pursuing,"  as  you  say,  I  have  not  meant 
to  leave  any  one  in  doubt. 

I  would  save  the  Union.  I  would  save  it  the  shortest  way  under 
the  Constitution.  The  sooner  the  national  authority  can  be  restored 
the  nearer  the  Union  will  be  "  the  Union  as  it  was."  If  there  be  those  who 
could  not  save  the  Union  unless  they  could  at  the  same  time  save 
Slavery,  I  do  not  agree  with  them.  If  there  be  those  who  would  some 
time  destroy  Slavery,  I  do  not  argue  with  them.  My  paramount  object 
in  this  struggle  is  to  save  the  Union  and  is  not  either  to  save  or  destroy 
Slavery.  If  I  could  save  the  Union  without  freeing  any  slave,  I  would 
do  it,  and  if  I  could  save  it  by  freeing  all  the  slaves,  I  would  do  it,  and 
if  I  could  save  it  by  freeing  some  and  leaving  others  alone  I  would  also 
do  that.  What  I  do  about  Slavery  and  the  colored  race,  I  do  because  I 
believe  it  helps  to  save  the  Union,  and  what  I  forbear,  I  forbear  because 
I  do  not  believe  it  would  help  to  save  the  Union.  I  shall  do  less  when- 
ever I  shall  believe  what  I  am  doing  hurts  the  cause,  and  I  shall  do  more 
whenever  I  shall  believe  doing  more  will  help  the  cause.  I  shall  try  to  cor- 
rect errors  when  shown  to  be  errors ;  and  I  shall  adopt  new  views  as  fast  as 
they  shall  appear  to  be  true  views.  I  have  here  stated  my  purpose  ac- 
cording to  my  view  of  official  duty,  and  I  intend  no  modification  of  my 
oft-expressed  personal  wish  that  all  men,  everywhere,  could  be  free. 


296       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

The  publication  of  Lincoln's  reply  was  accompanied  by  other 
•comment  in  the  more  important  papers  in  which  rebuke  to 
Greeley  was  freely  expressed.  The  National  Intelligencer,  of 
Washington,  for  example,  hoped  that  now  Lincoln  had  stated 
his  position  Greeley  would  be  "less  arrogant,  dictatorial,  and 
acrimonious."  It  added : "  Twenty  millions  of  Greeley 's  country- 
men have  a  right  to  claim  this  at  his  hands  in  deference  to  the 
high  office  whose  incumbent  he  ventures  to  arraign  before  the 
bar  of  public  opinion  in  their  name." 

Lincoln  was  delighted  with  the  response  from  the  press  to  his 
note.  He  found  that  the  better  understanding  between  himself 
and  the  newspapers  paved  the  way,  to  a  certain  extent,  for  the 
Emancipation  Proclamation  issued  on  the  22d  of  the  following 
month.  When  that  appeared,  Greeley  wrote  another  famous 
' editorial  which  concluded,  in  capital  letters,  "GOD  BLESS 
ABRAHAM  LINCOLN." 

In  the  South  the  curtailed  newspapers  had,  on  the  whole,  but 
little  room  for  editorials.  Most  of  their  space  was  given  to  the 
news  of  campaigns,  with  here  and  there  an  injection  of  comment 
by  the  editor.  Southern  newspapers  of  the  War  Period  have 
not  been  so  extensively  preserved  as  in  the  North:  consequently, 
the  problem  is  harder  to  pick  the  most  influential  editorial.  Pos- 
sibly none  attracted  greater  attention,  not  only  in  the  South,  but 
also  in  the  North,  than  the  one  which  early  appeared  in  The 
Courier,  of  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  when  it  indited  the  fol- 
lowing:— 

The  sword  must  cut  asunder  the  last  tie  that  bound  us  to  a  people, 
whom,  in  spite  of  wrongs  and  injustice  wantonly  inflicted  through  a 
long  series  of  years,  we  had  not  yet  utterly  hated  and  despised.  The 
last  expiring  spark  of  affection  must  be  quenched  in  blood.  Some  of  the 
most  splendid  pages  in  our  glorious  history  must  be  blurred.  A  blow 
must  be  struck  that  would  make  the  ears  of  every  Republican  fanatic 
tingle,  and  whose  dreadful  effects  will  be  felt  by  generations  yet  to  come. 
We  must  transmit  a  heritage  of  rankling  and  undying  hate  to  our  chil- 
dren. 

This  editorial  from  The  Courier  must  be  judged  by  the  stand- 
ards of  the  period  and  not  by  those  of  to-day.  It  was  no  worse 
than  some  of  the  treasonable  doctrine  advanced  by  the  Copper- 
head press  of  the  North. 


CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD  297 

BUTLER'S  FAMOUS  OR  INFAMOUS  ORDER 

General  Butler's  Order  Number  28  was  a  common  topic  for 
editorial  discussion  and  divided  the  press  into  two  camps  re- 
gardless of  section.  This  much-discussed  order  directed  that  any 
female  who  should  annoy  or  insult  a  Union  soldier  on  the  streets 
of  New  Orleans  should  be  arrested  at  once  and  treated  like  any 
bold  woman  of  the  town  plying  her  trade.  Whatever  may  have 
been  the  necessity  for  such  an  edict,  it  aroused  press  rebukes 
from  feminine  pens.  A  Southern  woman,  writing  to  the  editor 
of  The  Savannah  Republican,  urged  "  every  woman  in  our  Con- 
federacy" to  contribute  "her  mite  to  the  ripe  sum"  of  ten 
thousand  dollars  offered  in  a  paper  of  the  South  for  "the  in- 
famous Butler's  head." 

PUBLICATION  OF  FORGED   PROCLAMATION 

A  forged  proclamation,  reported  to  have  come  from  the  pen 
of  President  Lincoln,  was  published  in  May,  1864,  by  two  New 
York  newspapers,  The  World  and  The  Journal  of  Commerce. 
The  proclamation  was  designed  by  those  interested  in  the  forgery 
to  promote  financial  disturbance  in  the  stock  market  which 
could  be  taken  advantage  of  by  the  promoters.  It  called  for  four 
thousand  citizens  between  the  ages  of  eighteen  and  forty-five, 
either  by  volunteer  or  by  draft,  to  take  up  arms  for  the  preser- 
vation of  the  Union  and  in  addition  appointed  a  day  of  fasting 
and  prayer.  The  forged  proclamation  was  received  by  The  World 
and  by  The  Journal  of  Commerce  on  thin  manifold  sheets  exactly 
like  those  received  regularly  from  the  Associated  Press,  and  the 
time  of  its  delivery  was  so  arranged  that  the  late  arrival  did  not 
permit  extensive  investigation  before  publishing. 

Both  The  World  and  The  Journal  of  Commerce  were  deceived. 
After  their  discovery  of  the  imposition,  they  did  all  in  their 
power  to  rectify  the  wrong.  The  sale  of  papers  by  newsboys  and 
over  the  counters  was  stopped  at  once.  Where  it  was  possible, 
papers  which  had  already  been  mailed  to  distant  points  were 
recalled.  Rewards  were  offered  for  the  discovery  of  the  forger. 
The  Associated  Press  was  requested  to  notify  every  newspaper 
in  its  service  that  the  proclamation  was  a  forgery.  In  spite  of 


298       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

all  that  was  done,  however,  a  guard  on  May  18  was  thrown  around 
the  offices  of  The  World  and  The  Journal  of  Commerce  and  for 
four  days  the  publication  of  these  papers  was  suspended  and  their 
editors  and  owners  arrested  and  imprisoned  in  Fort  Lafayette, 
but  were  soon  released.  As  The  World  was  the  official  spokes- 
man of  the  Copperhead  press  of  New  York,  and  as  it  was  a  bitter 
opponent  of  Lincoln's  war  policies,  Secretary  Stanton  may  have 
been  misled  in  issuing  the  order  of  suspension,  but  that  he  com- 
mitted a  tactical  blunder  cannot  be  questioned.  Manton  Marble, 
the  editor  of  The  World,  drew  up  a  long  statement  about  the  forg- 
ery, and  after  printing  it  in  The  World  forwarded  it  with  other 
documents  to  President  Lincoln.  The  suspension  caused  a  great 
sensation  at  the  time  and  was  looked  upon  as  an  attempt  on  the 
part  of  Stanton  to  get  even  with  the  Copperhead  press  which 
had  so  bitterly  criticized  his  acts. 

Other  New  York  papers,  including  The  Tribune  and  The  Times, 
narrowly  escaped  being  fooled  by  the  same  bogus  proclamation. 
Copies  were  sent  to  all  morning  papers  of  the  city,  but  the  boy 
to  whom  they  were  given  delivered  the  copy  for  The  Tribune  at 
the  wrong  door  of  the  building  and  aroused  so  much  suspicion 
that  The  Tribune  called  up  The  Times  to  see  whether  the  proc- 
lamation was  a  genuine  dispatch  from  the  Associated  Press.  The 
Times,  which  had  accepted  the  message  in  good  faith,  was  in 
turn  aroused,  and,  finding  that  the  copy  did  not  come  from  the 
Associated  Press,  suppressed  the  document.  The  Sun,  on  ac- 
count of  its  large  circulation,  already  had  gone  to  press  when 
its  copy  arrived.  The  Herald,  before  its  suspicions  were  aroused, 
had  actually  printed  over  twenty  thousand  copies  of  the  paper 
with  the  bogus  proclamation,  but  when  it  found  that  neither 
The  Times  nor  The  Tribune  was  printing  the  document,  it  im- 
mediately substituted  something  else  and  recalled  the  copies 
already  printed,  save  a  few  which  had  already  been  mailed  to 
points  outside  the  city. 

The  author  of  the  forgery,  Joseph  Howard,  was  arrested  and 
upon  his  full  confession  was  also  sent  to  Fort  Lafayette.  The 
bogus  proclamation  caused  trouble  for  other  papers  which  re- 
printed it  in  good  faith.  The  Picayune,  in  New  Orleans,  for  ex- 
ample, reprinted  it,  and  General  Banks,  on  discovering  the  hoax, 


CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD  299 

ordered  the  plant  of  the  newspaper  to  be  seized  and  the  news- 
paper suppressed  from  May  23  to  July  9,  1864.  Other  papers 
of  the  South,  when  they  learned  of  the  suppression  of  The  World 
and  The  Journal  of  Commerce  in  New  York,  enlarged  on  the  fact 
and  declared  that  it  was  Lincoln's  policy  to  suspend  other  news- 
papers "until  freedom  of  speech  was  effectually  suppressed  and 
crossed  out  in  the  North." 

PERIPATETIC   PAPERS 

Of  all  the  peripatetic  papers  published  in  the  South,  during  the 
War  of  the  States,  possibly  The  Memphis  Appeal  had  the  most 
interesting  history.  This  newspaper,  the  mouthpiece  of  the 
Southern  soldier,  for  it  spoke  for  the  Confederate  army  in  general 
and  for  the  Army  of  Tennessee  in  particular,  was  forced  time 
and  time  again  to  move  its  type,  presses,  etc.,  from  place  to 
place  in  order  to  keep  in  advance  of  the  invading  army.  The 
first  of  these  migrations  was  on  Friday,  June  6,  1862,  during  the 
"sea"  fight  in  front  of  Memphis,  when  The  Appeal  retreated 
in  a  box  car  to  Grenada,  Mississippi.  The  following  Monday, 
June  9,  it  appeared  as  an  afternoon  paper,  and  was  published 
under  difficulties  because  the  exchanges  and  mail  from  which  it 
got  most  of  its  news  continued  to  be  delivered  at  Memphis. 
When  the  Federals  crowded  down  toward  Grenada,  The  Appeal 
went  farther  back  to  Jackson,  Mississippi :  from  November  29, 
the  date  of  the  last  issue  at  Grenada,  there  was  no  issue  until  De- 
cember 13,  when  The  Appeal  made  its  bow  at  Jackson  as  follows: 
"Though  driven  from  home,  we  are  not  among  strangers." 
Here  again  the  paper  had  its  same  troubles  with  the  exchange 
list  and  the  scarcity  of  paper,  and  for  over  six  weeks  it  appeared 
with  its  news  set  in  nonpareil  type  on  paper  of  varying  shape, 
color,  and  size.  Shelled  out  of  Jackson  on  May  14,  The  Appeal , 
taking  its  presses  and  its  type,  retreated  by  way  of  the  Southern 
Raijroad  to  Meridian,  only  to  find  a  more  permanent  place  at 
Atlanta,  where  it  was  located  between  Whitehall  Street  and  the 
Atlanta  and  Westpoint  Railroad,  but  it  left  a  few  cases  of  type 
and  an  old  proof-press,  with  which  to  get  out  small  extras  daily, 
at  Meridian.  From  Atlanta  the  press  and  type  were  shipped  to 
Montgomery,  but  part  of  the  staff  continued  to  issue  extra 


300       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

news-slips  from  a  proof-press.  Again  the  paper,  finding  it  neces- 
sary to  make  a  change,  went  to  Macon,  but  made  a  stop  at 
Columbus  on  the  way.  At  Macon  the  press,  hid  in  a  safe  place, 
was  not  discovered  until  after  General  Sherman  had  issued  an 
order  that  the  destruction  of  both  public  and  private  property 
must  cease,  but  the  proof -press,  and  the  few  cases  of  type  which 
had  been  left  behind  hi  Columbus  were,  after  being  pied,  de- 
stroyed by  the  order  of  Major-General  Wilson.  Thus  for  three 
years  The  Memphis  Appeal  was  printed  away  from  its  home 
city,  but  immediately  after  Appomattox  the  paper  returned 
to  Memphis,  where  it  brought  out  its  first  issue  November  5, 
1865. 

Another  peripatetic  newspaper  of  the  South  was  The  Chatta- 
nooga Rebel,  often  spoken  of  as  the  organ  of  the  Army  of  Tennes- 
see. -A  link  in  Southern  Journalism  between  the  ante-bellum 
papers  and  those  of  the  period  devoted  to  the  reconstruction, 
it  made  its  first  appearance  in  August,  1862,  being  published 
by  F.  M.  Paul,  with  the  assistance  of  John  C.  Burch.  An  early 
editor  was  Henry  Watterson,  who  later  achieved  still  greater 
fame  as  the  editor  of  The  Louisville  Courier- Journal.  After  the 
First  Manassas,  Watterson,  giving  up  his  Washington  corres- 
pondence, came  to  Nashville,  where  he  joined  the  staff  of  The 
Republican  Banner.  Upon  the  suspension  of  that  newspaper  and 
the  fall  of  the  city,  Watterson  joined  the  Confederate  army  as  a 
voluntary  aide.  It  was  while  serving  in  this  capacity  that  he  met 
the  publisher  of  The  Rebel,  who  persuaded  him  that  he  could  serve 
the  South  better  with  his  pen  than  in  any  other  way.  Neither 
Paul  nor  Watterson  approved  of  the  conduct  of  Bragg,  who  was 
in  control  of  the  army.  The  publisher,  however,  thought  that 
Bragg's  official  position  entitled  him  to  editorial  immunity  from 
The  Rebel.  Watterson,  however,  thought  otherwise,  and  later, 
during  the  absence  of  the  publisher  in  North  Carolina,  wrote  one 
of  his  typical  editorials  in  which  he  attacked  the  commander. 
For  this  "mutiny"  the  punishment  was  prompt;  the  next  day 
General  Bragg  issued  an  official  order  forbidding  the  circulation 
of  The  Rebel  within  the  Confederate  lines.  Associated  with  Wat- 
terson on  The  Rebel  was  Albert  Roberts,  who  had  worked  with 
the  former  on  The  Republican  Banner.  After  the  suspension  both 


CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD  301 

went  to  Atlanta  where  they  became  associated  with  The  Con- 
stitution of  that  city.  The  Rebel  was  permitted  to  appear  once 
again  and  did  excellent  service,  always  keeping  just  a  little  in 
advance  of  the  Federals,  until  it  was  finally  forced  to  surrender 
at  Selma  in  April,  1865. 

ARMY  ORGANS 

During  the  War  of  the  States  the  Federal  troops  frequently 
found  newspapers  in  towns  taken  by  Union  arms.  Often  they 
used  the  printing-press  of  such  a  paper  to  issue  an  army  organ. 
When  the  Third  Iowa  Regiment,  for  example,  passed  through 
Macon,  Missouri,  some  of  the  members  of  the  regiment  who 
were  printers  seized  a  press  and  some  type  belonging  to  The 
Register  of  that  place  and  published  an  army  paper  called  The 
Union.  When  General  Banks  received  the  surrender  of  Port 
Hudson,  Louisiana,  on  January  8,  1863,  some  of  the  printers  in 
the  army  seized  a  local  newspaper  and  got  out  one  issue  of  The 
Port  Hudson  Freeman  on  July  15,  1863,  to  tell  the  other  soldiers, 
with  large  display  heads,  about  the  Union  victories.  The  editor 
of  The  Port  Hudson  Freeman  was  Charles  A.  Ackert.  One  of  the 
best  of  these  army  organs  was  The  Weekly  Junior  Register ',  is- 
sued after  the  capture  of  Franklin,  Louisiana,  by  General  Banks: 
its  issue  for  April  25, 1863,  was  printed  on  the  blank  side  of  wall- 
paper. Especially  interesting  was  The  Kettle-Drum,  the  small 
official  organ  of  a  Pennsylvania  regiment. 

Confederate  forces  were  not  without  their  own  newspapers. 
The  Missouri  Army  Organ  was  a  four-page  sheet  published  in  the 
interest  of  the  Confederate  army  of  that  State.  It  was  edited  by 
Joseph  W.  Tucker,  a  Methodist  preacher,  who  had  been  editor 
of  The  Missouri  State  Journal  at  St.  Louis.  It  was  first  published 
on  October  28,  1861,  when  the  army  was  in  camp  at  Neosh.  An 
editorial  note  asserted  that  "this  little  newspaper  is  paid  for  by 
the  State,  expressly  for  the  use  of  the  army."  The  last  number 
was  issued  at  Camp  Churchill  Clark,  near  Corinth,  Arkansas. 
The  Rebel  and  Copperhead  Ventilator  at  Edina,  Missouri,  was 
also  in  a  certain  sense  an  army  sheet. 


302       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

EDITORS   AS   GENERALS 

If  the  newspapers  of  the  North  seemed  too  willing,  without 
sufficient  military  preparation,  to  tell  the  Government  how  the 
war  should  be  conducted,  they  were  but  doing  what  thousands 
of  others  were  doing,  from  the  select  coterie  who  dropped  into 
a  metropolitan  club  for  a  little  chat  down  to  the  farmers  who 
gathered  around  the  stove  beside  the  cracker  barrel  in  the  coun- 
try grocery  store.  Much  criticism  has  been  made  of  these  editors 
who  told  McClellan  how  to  take  Richmond  and  advised  Farra- 
gut  how  to  capture  New  Orleans,  but  the  fact  must  not  be  lost 
sight  of  that  the  close  relation  which  existed  between  the  press 
and  politics  was  not  to  be  severed  suddenly  even  by  the  outbreak 
of  a  great  war.  Very  often  the  suggestion  of  military  criticism  had 
come  from  some  official  in  Washington  too  petty  to  forget  politi- 
cal aspirations  even  at  such  a  time  as  the  Civil  War. 

Much  of  this  criticism  of  newspaper  generals  was  directed  to- 
ward New  York  editors  in  general  and  toward  Horace  Greeley, 
of  The  Tribune,  in  particular.  The  latter,  it  must  be  remembered, 
had  been  the  semi-official  adviser  of  party  officials  and  had  been 
instrumental  in  nominating  Lincoln  at  Chicago,  and  naturally 
thought  it  was  his  duty  to  advise  the  President,  whom  he  con- 
sidered rather  inexperienced  for  such  great  problems  as  now 
presented  themselves  for  solution.  Secretary  of  State  Seward 
had  been  a  partner  of  Greeley  in  party  organs,  and  again  it  was 
perfectly  natural  for  the  editor  of  The  Tribune  to  think  himself 
equally,  or  even  better,  informed  about  international  relations. 
Some  of  the  carping  criticism  which  Greeley  bestowed  upon 
Lincoln  may  have  been  due  to  the  fact  that  the  latter  had  ele- 
vated to  the  highest  office  within  his  power  a  man  whom  Greeley 
had  " nipped  at  Chicago"  for  reasons  already  given  in  a  preced- 
ing chapter. 

The  New  York  newspaper  generals  were  favorite  topics  for  the 
pens  of  the  cartoonists  of  the  period.  One  of  the  best  products 
of  their  pen  was  a  cartoon  which  caricatured  Greeley,  of  The 
Tribune,  Raymond,  of  The  Times,  and  Bennett,  of  The  Herald, 
as  "The  Three  Bedlams"  who  were  continually  stirring  the 
pot  of  "Governmental  Botheration."  Another  cartoon  was 


GREELEY'S   EDITORIAL  ATTACK 
"On  to  Richmond"  as  seen  by  a  contemporary 


CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD  303 

a  picture  of  the  newspaper  offices  on  Park  Row:  it  showed  The 
Tribune  building  transformed  into  a  military  school  which 
advertised  itself  as  having  "no  connection  with  the  shop  [New 
York  Times]  over  the  way."  Unusually  popular  at  the  time  was 
one  which,  entitled,  "Assault  by  the  Press  Gang,"  featured 
Bryant,  of  The  Evening  Post,  and  Greeley,  of  The  Tribune,  at- 
tacking Secretary  Stanton  and  General  McClellan :  in  the  cartoon 
Greeley  was  holding  under  McClellan's  nose  a  copy  of  his  edito- 
rial, "On  to  Richmond."  This  advice  by  Greeley,  "On  to 
Richmond,"  kept  standing  so  long  at  the  top  of  his  editorial 
columns,  appealed  to  the  pen  of  cartoonists  —  especially  after 
the  failure  of  the  attack,  doubtless  hastened  by  Greeley's  com- 
mand. O\.  careful  survey  of  the  cartoons  published  during  the 
Civil  War  Period  disclosed  the  interesting  fact  that  Greeley  was 
caricatured  more  often  than  any  other  man,  not  excluding 
Abraham  Lincoln.") 

ABSENCE   OF  CARTOONS 

For  some  reason  the  daily  papers  of  the  Civil  War  Period  pub- 
lished no  cartoons.  They  did  circulate,  however,  through  such 
media  as  envelopes,  broadsides,  colored  lithographs,  etc.  And 
the  artists  connected  with  Vanity  Fair,  a  comic  weekly  published 
in  New  York  in  the  early  sixties,  drew  most  of  their  inspiration 
from  the  stirring  events  of  the  period.  The  chief  cartoonist  of 
Vanity  Fair  was  H.  L.  Stephens :  it  was  he  who  pictured  New  York 
editors  as  he  saw  them  in  their  paper  military  campaign.  In  the 
absence  of  cartoons,  however,  the  press  lacked  a  great  weapon 
to  supplement  the  power  of  its  editorials.  Possibly  the  absence 
of  cartoons  in  daily  papers  may  be  explained  by  the  fact  that 
when  Hoe  put  the  type  on  the  cylinder,  he  made  illustrations 
extremely  difficult  and  costly.  But,  it  must  be  confessed,  the 
leading  metropolitan  dailies  had,  even  in  the  early  days  of  the 
war,  begun  to  stereotype  their  pages  and  to  use  war  maps 
extensively.  The  explanation,  therefore,  may  be  the  one  most 
often  given:  there  was  no  one  connected  with  the  newspapers 
of  sufficient  artistic  ability  to  do  the  work.  Until  The  World 
revived  cartoons  in  the  eighties  the  illustrated  weeklies  had  the 
field  of  wordless  journalism  to  themselves. 


304       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

CIKCULATION   CONTEST  CAEICATURED 

Something  resembling  a  cartoon,  however,  did  appear  on  the 
first  page  of  The  New  York  Times  on  the  morning  of  December 
11,  1861.  Bennett,  having  won  a  wager  that  his  Herald  had  a 
larger  circulation  than  that  of  Greeley's  Tribune,  began  blowing  a 
bag  of  braggadocio  that  The  Tribune  and  The  Times  together 
did  not  "  have  one  half  as  many  subscribers  as  The  Herald,  which 
sells  from  one  hundred  and  five  thousand  to  one  hundred  and 
thirty-five  thousand  of  its  daily  issue."  Raymond  accepted  the 
challenge  and  The  Times  offered  the  following  wagers :  — 

$2500  that  The  Herald  daily  issue  is  Not 135,000 

$2500  that  it  is  not 105,000 

$2500  that  it  is  not 100,000 

$2500  that  it  is  not 75,000 

$2500  that  The  Times  average  daily  issue  is  over  ...  25,000 

$2500  that  it  is  over 30,000 

$2500  that  it  is  over 40,000 

$2500  that  it  is  over 50,000 

$2500  that  it  is  over 75,000 

On  the  morning  mentioned,  The  Times  published  two  carica- 
tures of  Bennett.  The  first  pictured  him,  in  Scotch  costume, 
inflating  the  wind-bag  of  The  Herald.  Under  it  The  Times  re- 
printed numerous  extracts  from  The  Herald  about  the  latter's 
boasted  circulation  and  again  repeated  the  wagers  offered.  The 
second  and  lower  caricatures  showed  Bennett  in  a  recumbent 
position  with  pins  puncturing  the  bag,  from  which  all  the  wind 
had  escaped.  Under  it  The  Times  reprinted  from  The  Herald 
the  following  extracts  which  had  appeared  after  the  wagers  were 
first  offered:  — 

BROTHER  BENNETT  RESORTS  TO  THE  CONSOLATIONS 
OF  RELIGION 

From  The  Herald,  Dec.  5. 

Betting,  even  when  fair,  is  AGAINST  OUR  RELIGION,  and  we 
cannot  consent  to  let  him  have  the  information  he  seeks  in  that  way. 

From  The  Herald,  Dec.  7. 

Mr.  Mephistopheles  GREELEY  and  that  little  villain  RAYMOND 
are  greatly  moved  upon  the  subject  of  the  relative  circulation  of  The 


CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD  305 

Herald  and  their  own  petty  papers,  and  are  affected  to  tears  about  the 
matter.  We  are  sorry  for  them,  —  but  their  attempts  to  inveigle  us  into 
a  silly  bet  are  absolutely  in  vain.  THE  PRACTICE  OF  BETTING  IS 
IMMORAL.  We  cannot  approve  of  it.  It  may  suit  GREELEY  and 
RAYMOND,  who  have  exhibited  very  little  morality  in  the  conduct  of 
their  journals,  but  it  will  not  do  for  us. 

According  to  the  terms  one  half  of  the  wager  was  to  be  de- 
posited immediately  in  the  bank  and  the  whole  was  to  be  devoted 
by  the  winner  to  the  relief  of  families  of  Civil  War  volunteers. 
If  reproduced,  this  page  would  show,  not  only  both  caricatures, 
but  also  a  typical  war  map  so  frequently  inserted  during  the  Civil 
War  Period,  not  merely  in  The  Times,  but  also  in  many  other 
papers. 

For  the  bet  Bennett  suggested  as  substitute  that  The  Times 
and  The  Tribune  try  to  get  the  post-office  printing  of  adver- 
tised letters  awarded  to  the  local  paper  with  the  largest  circu- 
lation. Raymond's  rejoinder  was  that  the  post-office  offered 
rates  too  far  below  the  established  charges  of  The  Times  to  make 
the  job  profitable.  Bennett  never  explained  why  it  was  morally 
right  to  bet  with  The  Tribune  and  morally  wrong  to  bet  with 
The  Times.  On  the  other  hand,  Raymond,  who  had  started  with 
determination  to  keep  personalities  out  of  his  paper,  regretted 
that  he  had  inserted  the  caricatures  which  had  only  advertised 
The  Herald  in  the  columns  of  The  Times. 

SOUTHERN   SCARCITY  OF  PAPER 

Southern  newspapers  were  warned  by  The  New  Orleans  Bul- 
letin that  they  ought  to  say  less  about  secession  until  they  ceased 
to  use  Northern  type,  Northern  presses,  Northern  ink,  and 
Northern  paper  in  bringing  out  their  sheets.  The  assertion  has 
been  made  that  the  tone  of  many  papers  in  the  South  was  tem- 
pered by  a  realization  of  their  dependence  upon  the  North  for 
printing  supplies,  but  the  election  returns  of  1860  showed  that 
the  voters  of  the  South,  while  opposed  to  putting  Lincoln  in  the 
White  House,  were  not  in  favor  of  secession,  for  the  total  vote 
of  the  various  tickets  opposed  to  secession  was  larger  than 
that  of  the  candidate  favoring  a  separation.  Hence  this  charge 
of  an  ulterior  motive  influencing  editorial  expression  has  no 


306       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

more  foundation  than  a  similar  charge  brought  against  the  voters 
of  the  South. 

The  threat  implied  in  the  assertion  of  The  New  Orleans  Bul- 
letin proved  only  too  true  during  the  war.  The  supply  of  paper 
soon  became  so  inadequate  to  the  demand  that  practically  every 
paper  at  strategic  points  in  the  South  was  forced  to  reduce  its 
size.  The  Charleston  Courier,  for  example,  was  compelled  several 
times  to  make  such  reductions:  the  first  was  on  September  1, 
1861,  when  it  reduced  its  pages  to  18  x  26;  the  second  on  January 
1,  1862,  when  the  pages  were  reduced  to  15  x  24;  the  third  on 
April  1,  1862,  when  the  pages  were  made  13  x  20,  with  only  five 
columns  to  the  page;  later  it  appeared  on  a  single  printed  sheet, 
until  by  February  13,  1865,  it  was  a  small  sheet,  10  x  15,  with 
only  four  columns  to  the  page.  In  numerous  instances  papers  of 
the  South  did  away  with  headlines,  and  simply  issued  small  news- 
sheets  about  the  size  of  handbills  in  which  the  news  was  printed 
on  the  smallest  type  with  which  the  office  was  equipped.  On  ac- 
count of  the  scarcity  of  paper  some  of  the  leading  newspapers 
began  a  systematic  gathering  of  "  cotton  or  linen  rags,  white  or 
colored,"  for  which  the  highest  market  price  was  paid  either  in 
money  or  in  subscriptions  to  the  newspapers  themselves.  Many 
of  the  papers  were  forced  to  suspend  publication  entirely :  others, 
not  knowing  how  long  they  might  continue  publication,  published 
notices  limiting  the  period  for  which  they  would  receive  sub- 
scriptions. The  Memphis  Daily  Appeal  did  not  take  subscrip- 
tions for  a  period  longer  than  two  months  and  The  Macon  Daily 
Confederate  refused  all  orders  for  more  than  three  months. 

EDITIONS   ON  WALL-PAPER 

Before  entirely  ceasing  publication  many  newspapers  availed 
themselves  of  such  materials  as  common  wrapping-paper,  writ- 
ing paper,  and  paper  bags :  a  few  actually  printed  the  news  on  the 
blank  side  of  wall-paper.  Among  the  latter  with  wall-paper  edi- 
tions were  the  following:  The  Pictorial  Democrat,  of  Alexandria, 
Louisiana;  The  Daily  Citizen,  of  Vicksburg,  Mississippi;  The 
Courier,  of  Opelousas,  Louisiana;  The  Southern  Sentinel,  of 
Alexandria,  Louisiana;  The  Courier,  of  St.  Martinsville,  Louis- 
iana; The  Stars  and  Stripes,  of  Thibodaux,  Louisiana;  etc. 


CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD  307 

SUBSCRIPTION  RATES  RAISED 

The  scarcity  of  paper  greatly  increased  subscription  rates. 
The  prices  asked  by  a  few  sheets  may  be  mentioned  by  way  of 
illtistration.  During  1864  the  subscription  price  of  The  Macon 
Daily  Telegraph,  published  by  Joseph  Clisby,  was  forty-eight 
dollars  a  year;  in  October,  1864,  it  raised  its  subscription  price 
to  sixty  dollars  a  year;  in  December,  1864,  it  went  to  seventy- 
two  dollars  a  year;  in  January,  1865,  it  again  advanced  the 
price  to  ninety-six  dollars  a  year;  in  March,  1865,  it  boosted  the 
price  to  one  hundred  and  twenty  dollars  a  year.  In  view  of 
the  fact  that  The  Macon  Daily  Telegraph  was  often  a  small  one- 
page  sheet,  such  a  subscription  price  seems  unusually  high.  The 
Memphis  Appeal,  though  it  continued  to  be  sold  at  half-price 
to  Confederate  soldiers,  advanced  its  regular  subscription  price 
in  June,  1863,  to  two  dollars  and  a  half  per  month;  again  in  July 
to  three  dollars  a  month;  still  again  in  January  of  the  next  year 
to  four  dollars  a  month;  and  once  again  in  March  to  five  dollars 
a  month  —  these  prices  were  for  coin  currency  and  not  for  paper 
money.  The  daily  edition  of  The  Georgia  Journal  and  Messen- 
ger, published  at  Macon  by  Knowles  &  Rose,  charged  seventy- 
two  dollars  a  year  at  the  beginning  of  the  war,  and  later 
advanced  its  rate  as  paper  became  more  scarce. 

Evidently  the  high  prices  charged  for  single  copies  of  news- 
papers must  have  aroused  numerous  protests.  In  one  of  its  wall- 
paper editions,  June  18,  1863,  The  Citizen,  of  Vicksburg,  printed 
an  item  on  "The  Price  of  Our  Paper  and  the  News  Boys,"  in 
which  the  following  explanation  was  given:  "The  price  of  our 
paper  at  the  office  is  twenty-five  cents.  Newboys  who  charge 
fifty  cents  on  the  streets  are  not  authorized  by  us  to  sell  at  that 
price;  and  those  who  object  to  the  extortion  should  call  at  the 
office  and  get  their  papers  at  first  cost.  We  cannot  control  the 
trade  nor  the  prices  of  newsboys  and  can  only  sell  our  papers  to 
them  at  the  same  prices  that  we  get  from  those  who  call  at  the 
office." 

Some  of  the  papers  in  the  South  avoided  total  suspension  by 
leading  a  peripatetic  career.  Box  cars  were  transformed  into 
printing-offices  and  taken  from  place  to  place  with  each  advance 


308       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

of  the  Federal  forces.  Occasionally  papers  temporarily  suspended 
for  the  same  reason  as  that  given  by  The  Daily  Confederate,  of 
Macon,  Georgia:  " There  was  no  paper  issued  from  The  Con- 
federate office  on  Sunday  morning.  Every  man  in  the  establish- 
ment was  in  the  field  on  Saturday.  We  hope  our  subscribers 
will  consider  this  a  sufficient  excuse.  Two  of  our  employees,  we 
believe,  were  'shot  in  the  neck.'" 

INKS   AND   NEAR-INKS 

The  scarcity  of  ink  caused  the  publishers  of  newspapers  in  the 
South  almost  as  much  annoyance  as  the  scarcity  of  paper.  The 
poor  typographical  appearance  of  some  papers  was  not  the  fault 
of  the  printer,  but  of  the  materials  with  which  he  had  to  work. 
Home-made  inks,  though  often  so  poorly  mixed  that  they  did 
not  spread  evenly  over  the  rollers,  nevertheless  gave  a  far  better 
impression  than  did  some  of  the  substitutes  or  "near  inks." 
The  extremity  to  which  certain  publishers  were  put  when  print- 
ing-ink could  no  longer  be  bought  from  the  North  was  illus- 
trated rather  forcibly  when  they  were  compelled  to  print  their 
sheets  with  ordinary  shoe-blacking.  The  Memphis  Appeal  was 
one  of  these  papers  which  had  to  employ  such  a  substitute  for 
ink. 

NEWSPAPER  TICKETS 

When  federal  troops  occupied  Southern  cities  and  permitted 
the  publication  of  its  newspapers,  under  certain  restrictions, 
some  difficulty  was  experienced  in  arranging  payment  for  sub- 
scriptions. Usually  this  difficulty  was  met  by  selling  tickets  in 
amounts  ranging  from  two  to  five  dollars  in  Federal  currency. 
Each  ticket  thus  sold  was  good  for  one  copy  of  the  paper  daily 
during  the  time  for  which  the  subscription  had  been  paid.  Oc- 
casionally notes  for  amounts  mentioned,  payable  in  thirty  days, 
were  taken  from  responsible  parties.  In  other  instances  all  copies 
were  sold  over  the  newspaper  counter  and  only  coin  was  ac- 
cepted in  payment.  Resentment  was  felt  by  the  local  citizens 
because  Confederate  bills  were  refused  as  of  no  value  what- 
ever. 


CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD  309 

CONDITIONS   IN   THE   NORTH 

In  the  North  the  daily  paper  suffered  no  such  difficulties  as 
found  in  the  South  in  the  matter  of  securing  the  raw  product  on 
which  to  print  the  news.  The  larger  dailies,  however,  were  forced 
to  carry  the  additionally  heavy  burdens  of  war  correspondents. 
In  the  general  advance  in  prices  on  all  merchandise  the  news- 
paper was  no  exception.  Printers  shared  in  the  increase  in  wages 
and  this  added  a  considerable  amount  to  the  cost  of  production. 
Printing-paper  doubled  in  cost  the  first  year  and  again  the 
second  until  it  brought  thirty  cents  a  pound.  After  the  first  year 
of  the  war  most  of  the  leading  dailies  advanced  their  prices  about 
one  cent  every  twelve  months  until  they  were  selling  at  four  and 
five  cents  a  copy.  There  were,  however,  a  number  of  noticeable 
exceptions  to  this  advance  in  price.  The  Sun,  of  New  York, 
which  had  been  founded  as  a  penny  paper  and  had  taken  great 
pride  in  its  price,  held  off  for  a  long  time  before  increasing  its 
rate:  even  then  it  found  a  subterfuge  by  advertising,  "Price  one 
cent  in  gold,  two  cents  otherwise."  Part  of  this  increase  in  price 
was  due  to  the  fact  that  newspapers  increased  their  size,  not  by 
enlarging  the  sheet  as  in  the  case  of  the  old  six-penny  blanket 
papers,  but  by  increasing  the  number  of  pages,  now  possible 
through  the  invention  of  Hoe.  Other  papers  partially  met  the 
increased  cost  by  increasing  the  charges  for  advertising  and  by 
still  keeping  their  old  size. 

The  war,  especially  in  the  North,  made  many  additional 
newspaper  readers.  Papers  were  eagerly  purchased  in  order  to 
learn  whether  relatives  or  friends  were  among  those  wounded  or 
lost  in  battle.  The  desire  to  know  the  news  gave  a 
petus  to  t*10 -forHQy  "fiwap0]^,  wKTrh ,  iintilhthe  Civil  Wnr,  had 
attracted  but  little  attention.  FoY~thlTSmiday  edition,  though 
no  larger  than  regular  issues,  an  increase  of  one  cent  was  gener- 
ally asked.  This  additional  charge  was  justified  on  the  ground 
that  the  distribution  of  papers  cost  more  on  Sundays.  Gradu- 
ally the  papers  began  to  add,  by  way  of  good  measure,  a  few 
additional  features,  chiefly  semi-news  in  value,  to  the  Sunday 
editions.  In  this  way  began  the  differentiation  between  the  daily 
paper  and  the 


310       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 


CONDITIONS   IN   THE   WEST 

'city 


In  the  West  different  conditions  obtained.  Here  the  scarcity 
of  paper  was  especially  felt.  The  Rocky  Mountain  News,  of 
Denver,  frequently  found  itself  in  the  same  position  as  that  of 
many  of  the  Southern  papers  and  made  its  regular  appearances 
only  with  the  help  of  wrapping-paper,  tissue  paper,  and  even 
writing-paper.  The  towns  of  the  West  and  those  hi  some  of  the 
Border  States  were  compelled,  when  martial  law  was  declared, 
to  reduce  their  size  and  print  little  else  than  military  orders  and 
official  notices.  On  the  Pacific  Coast  there  was  no  increase  in 
subscription  rates.  The  price  of  "one  bit"  (12J  cents)  was  still 
sufficient  to  meet  the  increased  cost  of  white  paper,  as  the  news- 
papers did  not  increase  their  size,  but  met  the  situation  by  a  more 
careful  pruning  of  the  news  items.  The  California  papers  became 
masters  of  the  art  of  boiling  down  the  news  in  small  space. 

STATE  EXEMPTIONS  FOR  WORKERS 

Many  of  the  States  in  the  Confederacy  provided  for  the 
exemption  of  newspaper  men  from  military  duty  in  order  that 
the  public  might  not  be  deprived  of  newspapers.  Some  restric- 
tions were,  of  course,  imposed.  In  South  Carolina,  for  example, 
provision  was  made  that  the  number  thus  excused  should  not 
exceed  seven  for  a  daily  in  Charleston,  five  for  a  daily  in  Colum- 
bia, and  two  for  a  country  paper.  In  Virginia  the  law  exempted 
"one  editor  of  each  newspaper  not  being  published  in  the  state, 
and  such  employe's  as  the  editor  or  proprietor  may  certify  on 
honor  to  be  indispensible  for  conducting  the  publication  of  the 
newspaper,  so  long  as  the  same  is  regularly  published  at  least 
once  a  week." 

The  Northern  States  during  the  war  were  not  so  generous  in 
excusing  editors  and  printers  from  military  service.  The  result 
was  that  numerous  country  weeklies  found  themselves  severely 
handicapped  in  getting  out  their  issues.  The  difficulty  was  met 
by  sending  to  a  newspaper  in  a  near-by  city  and  having  the  lat- 
ter paper  print  one  half  of  the  sheet  with  the  latest  available 
war  news.  The  other  half  was  printed  in  the  country  town  and 
filled  with  local  news  and  local  advertising.  From  this  scheme  of 


CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD  311 

cooperation  grew  the  present  plan  of  getting  out  newspapers  with 
the  help  of  patent  "insides,"  or  "outsides,"  as  the  case  may  be. 
In  this  way  the  cost  of  production  for  country  weeklies  was 
greatly  reduced.  Often  the  half-printed  sheets  were  sold  for  the 
cost  of  white  paper.  The  profit  of  the  producing  company  was 
made  from  general  advertising. 

IMPROVEMENTS   IN   STEREOTYPING 

Though  The  London  Times  in  1856  had  adopted  a  modern 
papier-mache  process  of  stereotyping,  it  used  the  process,  not  for 
pages,  but  only  for  columns,  which  were  fastened  on  the  type- 
revolving  cylinder  of  Hoe's  press  by  means  of  V-shaped  rules. 
In  the  same  year  a  proposition  was  made  to  The  New  York 
Tribune  by  English  stereotypers  to  establish  a  plant  in  New  York 
and  to  stereotype  The  New  York  Tribune  at  so  much  per  column. 
Nothing,  however,  came  from  these  negotiations.  Newspapers 
in  New  York  and  in  other  large  cities  continued  to  buy  new 
outfits  of  type  practically  every  three  months. 

When  the  War  of  the  States  broke  out,  circulation  had  in- 
creased so  rapidly  that  it  was  impossible  for  either  The  New  York 
Tribune  or  The  New  York  Herald  to  meet  the  demand  for  papers 
and  Richard  Hoe  was  negotiating  with  Greeley  and  Bennett  for 
the  construction  of  twenty-cylinder  type-revolving  presses  to 
meet  the  situation.  Meanwhile,  Charles  Craske,  a  stereotyper 
by  the  clay  process,  had  been  experimenting  with  the  papier- 
mache  process  in  an  attempt  to  apply  it  to  newspaper  pages.  His 
experiments  were  carried  on  in  rooms  provided  by  The  New  York 
Tribune,  which  had  reached  the  point  where  it  must  have  the 
faster  presses  already  mentioned  or  set  its  pages  in  duplicate,  as 
had  been  the  practice  of  The  London  Times  before  it  adopted  the 
papier-mache  process.  His  idea  was  to  cast  the  whole  page  after 
the  manner  now  employed,  but  in  his  experiments,  covering  over 
two  years,  he  failed  to  make  satisfactory  progress  because  he 
attempted  to  cast  the  plates  type-high.  It  was  only  when  he 
reached  the  conclusion  to  cast  a  thin  plate  and  then  to  compel 
press-builders  to  change  the  cylinder  that  he  succeeded  in  over- 
coming his  difficulty.  In  August,  1861,  The  Tribune  commenced 
to  print  from  curved  ste?66"fyped  plates  of  whole  pages. 


312       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

An  unfortunate  though  humorous  incident  delayed  the  success 
of  Craske  for  several  months.  His  room  in  the  building  of  The 
Tribune  was  directly  over  the  editorial  sanctum  of  Horace 
Greeley.  In  the  course  of  one  of  his  experiments  some  hot  and 
exceedingly  dirty  water  from  the  steam  heaters  was  spilled  upon 
the  floor :  it  leaked  through  the  boards  and  dropped  directly  upon 
Greeley's  bald  head.  Some  of  the  hot  water  which  carried  chem- 
icals in  solution  actually  stained  the  halo  of  whiskers  under 
Greeley's  chin.  The  accident  so  incensed  the  editor  of  The 
Tribune  that  he  went  upstairs  and  threw  the  stereotyping  outfit 
from  the  building. 

There  has  been  little  change  in  stereotyping  newspaper  pages 
since  August,  1861,  when  The  Tribune  adopted  the  papier-mache 
process.  The  New  York  Times  soon  adopted  the  new  process,  as 
did  The  New  York  Herald.  Because  of  this  process  it  was  no 
longer  necessary  to  add  additional  cylinders  to  the  press.  Pages 
could  be  duplicated  to  the  number  desired  and  several  presses 
could  be  employed  at  the  same  time  to  print  the  same  edition  of 
the  newspaper.  Craske  not  only  revolutionized  newspaper 
stereotyping  in  America,  but  he  also  changed  completely  the 
construction  of  American  printing-presses.  By  1880  forty-five 
daily  newspapers  in  the  United  States  were  printing  with  plates 
made  by  this  papier-mache  process :  they  were  distributed  among 
the  following  States  —  Pennsylvania,  10;  New  York,  9;  Ohio,  6; 
Illinois,  6;  Massachusetts,  2;  Maryland,  2;  California,  2;  Mis- 
souri, 2;  Wisconsin,  1 ;  Minnesota,  1 ;  New  Jersey,  1 ;  Kentucky,  1 ; 
Indiana,  1;  Michigan,  1. 

ADVERTISING   OF  THE   PERIOD 

Newspaper  advertising,  not  only  in  the  South,  but  also  in  the 
North,  reflected  the  spirit  of  the  great  conflict  of  the  period.  Both 
Governments  used  the  advertising  columns  extensively  to  make 
known  their  various  needs  for  army  supplies.  Other  advertise- 
ments for  some  unaccountable  reason  escaped  the  watchful  eye 
of  the  censor,  even  in  the  South,  where  the  censorship  was  more 
strict  than  in  the  North.  The  following  advertisement,  printed 
in  The  Charleston  Mercury  early  in  1861,  " boiled  down"  an 
important  news  item:  — 


CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD  313 

Wanted  —  A  first  class  strongly  built  clipper.  She  must  be  fast, 
light  draft,  and  capable  of  being  fitted  out  as  a  privateer.  Address 
Sunder  through  the  post-office. 

In  the  North  newspaper  pages  fairly  bristled  with  advertise- 
ments like  the  following:  — 

An  officer  of  the  First  Division  proposes  to  raise  a  Regiment  to 
Volunteer  its  services  to  the  State  in  support  of  the  Federal  Union. 
Persons  desirous  of  uniting  in  such  a  movement  are  requested  to  ad- 
dress, post-paid,  Union  Volunteers,  N.Y.,  Post  Office  Station  D. 

Attention!  —  Persons  desirous  of  joining  a  Military  Organization 
for  the  purpose  of  Defending  the  Union,  and  to  uphold  the  laws  at  all 
hazards,  will  please  address  Volunteer,  Tribune  Office. 

The  advertisements  in  the  newspapers  of  the  Secession  States 
continually  indicated  the  tremendous  fluctuation  in  the  value  of 
the  paper  currency  of  the  Confederacy.  In  the  North  a  similar 
condition  obtained  even  though  the  fluctuation  was  not  so 
marked.  A  clothing  store,  for  example,  published  an  announce- 
ment that,  owing  to  the  victory  of  the  Union  army  and  the  fall 
in  gold,  it  was  offering  its  stock  of  gentlemen's  furnishings  at 
greatly  reduced  prices.  Other  advertisements  were  linked  with 
war  news  in  similar  ways :  a  Chicago  bookstore  advertised  season- 
able books,  in  treasonable  times,  at  reasonable  prices.  Whatever 
was  the  product  offered  for  sale,  its  advertisement  often  had  a 
distinctly  war-time  flavor.  The  conditions  were  identical  so  far 
as  mode  of  treatment  of  advertisements  was  concerned  with 
those  which  obtained  when  the  United  States  united  with  the 
Allies  in  1917,  save  that  heavy  advertisers  did  not  give  up  their 
space  for  the  insertion  of  notices  urging  citizens  to  buy  Govern- 
ment bonds. 

In  the  most  exciting  places  of  publication,  newspapers  did  not 
neglect  their  attention  to  advertising  even  where  the  supply  of 
paper  was  only  sufficient  to  print  single  sheets.  The  Evening 
Whig,  for  example,  in  its  first  issue  after  Richmond  had  been 
evacuated,  told  its  readers:  — 


Several  days  will  elapse,  we  suppose,  before  business  is  actively  re- 
sumed. Still,  there  are  stocks  if  goods  in  the  city,  and  others  will  be 
rapidly  introduced  by  loyal  perspns  who  may  be  authorized  to  carry  on 


314       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

trade  in  Richmond.  We  suggest  that  parties  having  anything  for  sale 
in  Richmond,  especially  the  necessaries  of  life,  will  make  the  fact 
known  through  the  advertising  columns  of  The  Whig. 


POSTAL  REGULATIONS 

«ht 


Changes  in  the  postal  laws  affecting  newspapers  were  so  slig 
after  1825  that  they  have  not  been  noticed  under  the  various 
periods.  Always,  however,  there  was  some  discussion  by  Post- 
master-Generals, in  their  reports  to  Congress,  about  the  advis- 
ability of  charging  for  newspapers  by  weight  rather  than  by 
piece.  Attention  was  repeatedly  called  to  the  fact  that  small, 
struggling  sheets  paid  the  same  postage  as  the  mammoth  blanket 
sheets  of  New  York  and  elsewhere,  which  were,  on  the  average, 
six  feet  square.  On  March  3,  1845,  a  new  act,  while  changing 
letter  postage,  allowed  the  old  newspaper  rates  to  stand,  except 
that  all  papers  were  granted  free  postage  for  not  exceeding  thirty 
miles  from  place  of  publication,  provided  that  they  were  "of  no 
greater  size  or  superficies  than  1900  square  inches."  In  1847 
newspaper  postage  to  California  and  Oregon  was  fixed  at  four 
and  one  half  cents.  In  1851  the  free  limit  of  thirty  miles  was 
abolished,  but  free  circulation  within  the  county  of  publication 
was  granted.  Under  the  same  Act  of  1851  quarterly  rates  were 
established.  Weeklies,  for  example,  paid  five  cents  a  quarter  for 
all  distances,  under  fifty  miles  and  out  of  the  county;  ten  cents 
for  over  fifty  and  under  three  hundred  miles;  fifteen  cents  for 
over  three  hundred  and  under  one  thousand  miles;  twenty  cents 
for  over  one  thousand  and  under  two  thousand  miles;  thirty 
cents  for  over  two  thousand  and  under  four  thousand.  For  semi- 
weeklies  it  was  double,  for  tri-weeklies  treble,  and  for  dailies  five 
times  these  rates.  A  distinction  was  made  for  newspapers  under 
three  hundred  square  inches :  they  were  charged  only  one  quarter 
of  the  rates  just  given. 

These  changes  affected  in  no  way  the  Act  of  1825  which 
granted  to  every  printer  of  a  newspaper  permission  to  send  one 
paper  free  of  charge  to  each  and  every  other  printer  of  a  news- 
paper in  the  United  States.  This  special  privilege,  undoubtedly 
abused  by  the  printers,  imposed  heavy  burdens  upon  the  Postal 
Department,  for  Postmaster-Generals  were  continually  discus- 


CIVIL  WAR  PERIOD  315 

sing  the  so-called  "unjustifiable  discrimination  in  favor  of  edi- 
tors." During  the  first  year  of  the  period,  Postmaster-General 
Holt  published  a  report  for  1859.  His  comment  was  typical  of 
the  attitude  of  the  Postal  Department :  — 

The  newspapers  received  by  the  journalist  is,  in  American  parlance, 
his  stock  in  trade.  From  their  columns  he  gathers  materials  for  his  own, 
and  thus  makes  the  same  business  use  of  them  as  does  the  merchant 
of  his  goods  or  the  manufacturer  of  the  raw  material  which  he  proposes 
to  manufacture  into  fabric.  But  as  the  government  transports  nothing 
free  of  charge  to  the  farmer,  merchant,  or  mechanic  to  enable  them  to 
prosecute  successfully  and  economically  their  different  pursuits,  why 
should  it  do  so  for  the  journalist?  If  the  latter  can  rightfully  claim  that 
his  newspaper  shall  thus  be  delivered  to  him  at  the  public  expense,  why 
may  he  not  also  claim  that  his  stationery  and  type,  and  indeed  every- 
thing which  enters  into  the  preparation  of  the  sheet  he  issues  as  his 
means  of  living,  be  delivered  to  him  on  the  same  terms?  It  has  been 
alleged,  I  am  aware,  that  postage  on  newspaper  exchanges  would  be  a 
tax  on  the  dissemination  of  knowledge.  But  so  is  the  postage  which  the 
farmer,  mechanic  and  merchant  pay  on  the  newspaper  for  which  they 
subscribe;  yet  it  is  paid  by  them  uncomplainingly.  If  it  should  be  in- 
sisted that  the  publishers  of  newspapers,  as  a  class,  are  in  such  a  con- 
dition as  to  entitle  them  to  demand  the  aid  of  the  public  funds,  it  may 
be  safely  answered  that  such  an  assumption  is  wholly  unwarranted. 
Journalism  in  the  United  States  rests  upon  the  deepest  and  broadest 
foundation,  and  has  here  won  a  career  far  more  brilliant  and  prosper- 
ous than  in  any  other  nation  in  the  world.  The  exceedingly  reduced 
rates  at  which  its  issues  pass  through  the  mails  secure  to  it  advan- 
tages enjoyed  under  no  other  government. 

The  newspapers  fought  bitterly  any  attempt  to  abolish  this 
special  privilege  by  which  they  secured  the  news.  Already, 
however,  the  larger  dailies  had  united  to  form  press  associations 
to  share  the  financial  burdens  of  gathering  the  news.  The 
smaller  papers  then  began  to  condense  from  their  daily  contem- 
poraries so  that  there  was  no  longer  any  necessity  for  this  whole- 
sale exchange.  By  the  time  all  newspapers  were  charged  by 
weight  the  exchange  privilege  had  adjusted  itself  to  such  reason- 
able limits  that  it  no  longer  warranted  any  special  attention 
from  the  Postal  Department. 

Before  the  War  of  the  States  the  local  postmaster  was  very 
lax  in  collecting  postage  on  newspapers.  To  a  certain  extent 
they  had  been  corrupted  by  publishers  who  were  unusually  gen- 


316       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

erous  in  supplying  free  copies  to  postmasters,  postal  clerks  on 
trains,  stage-drivers,  etc.  This  petty  graft  often  gave  the  pro- 
vincial newspaper  free  circulation  even  outside  the  county  of 
publication.  Or,  at  best,  it  reduced  appreciably  the  revenue  due 
the  Government.  The  large  increase  in  newspaper  production 
during  the  war  brought  about  a  radical  change  due  to  the  activ- 
ities of  the  Postal  Department.  New  stamps  in  denominations  of 
five,  ten,  and  twenty-five  cents  were  prepared  for  the  defraying 
of  postage  of  newspaper  packages  and  more  careful  postal 
inspection  prevented  any  loss  in  revenue  to  which  the  Govern- 
ment was  entitled. 

The  Post-Office  Department  did  not  hesitate  to  deny  North- 
ern newspapers  the  use  of  the  mails  when  they  published  matter 
adjudged  to  be  treasonable.  One  illustration  must  suffice.  On 
August  16, 1861,  the  Grand  Jury  of  New  York  City  "  presented  " 
The  Journal  of  Commerce,  The  Daily  News,  The  Day  Book,  The 
Freeman's  Journal,  and  The  Brooklyn  Eagle  to  the  Circuit  Court 
of  the  United  States  on  the  charge  that  these  papers  contained 
treasonable  utterances  "calculated  to  aid  and  comfort  the 
enemy,"  and  added  to  its  presentment  the  following  conclusion: 
"The  conduct  of  these  disloyal  presses  is  of  course  condemned 
and  abhorred  by  all  loyal  men,  but  the  grand  jury  will  be  glad 
to  learn  from  the  Court  that  it  is  also  subject  to  indictment  and 
condign  punishment."  Thereupon  the  Post-Office  Department 
at  Washington  sent  the  following  notice  to  the  Postmaster  of 
New  York:  — 

Sir:  The  Postmaster-General  directs  that  from  an'd  after  your  re- 
ceipt of  this  letter  none  of  the  newspapers  published  in  New  York  City 
which  were  lately  presented  by  the  grand  jury  as  dangerous,  from  their 
disloyalty,  shall  be  forwarded  in  the  mails. 

At  other  times  the  Post-Office  Department  denied  the  mails  to 
Northern  papers  which  expressed  dissatisfaction  with  the  use  of 
force  to  overcome  the  States  then  in  secession. 


CHAPTER  XVII 

RECONSTRUCTION  PERIOD 

1865—1880 

THE  period  after  the  War  of  the  States  was  one  of  reconstruc- 
tion, not  only  in  the  world  of  politics,  but  also  in  that  of  journal- 
ism. Many  changes  had  been  wrought  in  the  mechanical  pro- 
duction of  papers.  Hoe,  in  order  to  get  speed  out  of  the  press, 
had  taken  the  type  from  a  flat  bed  and  put  it  on  a  revolving 
cylinder:  Craske  had  stereotyped  the  page  of  type  so  that  pages 
could  be  duplicated  for  as  many  presses  as  the  plant  possessed : 
Bullock  had  begun  to  feed  paper  to  the  press  from  a  huge  roll: 
Morse,  to  help  gather  the  news,  had  stretched  from  Dan  to 
Beersheba  an  electric  wire  which  ran  direct  to  the  newspaper 
office.  Other  changes  were  soon  to  come.  Mergenthaler  told 
the  compositor  to  stop  distributing  type  into  cases  after  the 
paper  had  been  printed  and  to  cast  a  line-of-type  at  a  time,  to  be 
thrown  back,  when  used,  into  the  melting-pot;  another  inventor 
found  a  cheap  method  of  manufacturing  paper  from  wood  pulp; 
still  another,  in  order  that  the  paper  might  have  a  late  entry,  put 
a  "fudge"  attachment  upon  the  press  so  that  even  after  the 
cylinders  had  started  revolving,  a  bulletin  of  the  latest  item 
might  be  printed  on  the  front  page  —  in  a  colored  ink  if  desired. 
The  Government  agreed  to  carry  papers  by  weight  regardless  of 
distance  to  all  points  of  the  United  States  for  two  cents  a  pound 
and  free  of  charge  to  places  in  the  county  of  publication,  save 
where  delivery  was  made  to  homes  by  mail-carriers,  for  which  an 
extra  fee  was  charged. 

A  city  news  association  collected  the  local  items  in  every  field 
of  industry.  A  press  association,  composed  of  newspapers  scat- 
tered over  the  continent,  sent  in  the  happenings  of  national 
importance.  An  international  bureau  of  the  four  great  news- 
gathering  organizations  literally  watched  the  four  corners  of  the 


318       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

world.  In  addition,  a  special  corps  of  reporters  and  correspond- 
ents at  strategic  points  not  only  at  home,  but  also  abroad,  sup- 
plemented, but  did  not  supplant,  the  cooperative  agencies.  The 
one-man  commentator  on  the  news  became  an  editorial  staff  of 
several  members.  Their  daily  conferences  made  the  editorial 
"we"  a  truth  and  a  reality.  But  they  still  left  a  column  or  two 
for  the  letters  of  "Pro  Bono  Publico"  and  "  Veritas,"  and  let  the 
cartoon,  in  a  wordless  editorial,  state  the  policy  of  the  paper. 
Pegs  were  driven  in  the  walls  of  the  sanctum  for  the  hats  of  the 
city  editor,  the  sporting  editor,  the  dramatic  editor,  the  literary 
editor,  the  Sunday  editor,  the  financial  editor,  etc. 

But  this  is  going  too  fast  with  the  story.  During  the  war  the 
people  demanded  the  latest  news,  and  in  their  efforts  to  supply 
this  demand  the  newspapers  had  put  forth  every  energy,  regard- 
less of  the  cost.  After  the  war  the  press  realized  that  the  reading 
public  which  had  been  accustomed  to  startling  events  would  be 
no  longer  willing  to  go  back  to  the  newspapers  of  slavery  days, 
and  it  continued  the  custom  of  seeking  the  news  which  interested 
the  people.  The  chief  contribution  of  the  War  of  the  States  to 
American  journalism,  save  for  the  mechanical  improvements  in 
production  already  listed  in  the  preceding  paragraphs,  was  the 
willingness  of  newspapers  to  spend  money  for  news-gathering. 

EEACTIONS   OF  THE   WAR 

The  war  reacted  hi  another  way  on  the  American  newspaper: 
it  put  the  editorial  in  the  background.  During  the  stirring  days 
of  1860-65,  readers  began  to  care  less  for  editorial  opinions  and 
more  for  the  news.  They  came  to  speak  no  longer  of  The  Herald 
as  Bennett's  paper,  of  The  Times  as  Raymond's  paper,  or  of 
The  Tribune  as  Greeley's  paper.  Amid  the  gigantic  struggle  for 
the  preservation  of  the  Union  they  lost  much  of  their  interest 
in  personalities.  The  newspapers,  however,  especially  in  the 
North,  continued  to  have  their  party  affiliations  and  were  seldom 
free  from  a  biased  point  of  view.  In  New  York,  for  example, 
The  World  continued  to  print  items  to  show  that  the  South  was 
still  disloyal;  The  Tribune,  on  the  other  hand,  took  quite  the 
opposite  point  of  view  from  that  of  its  neighbor;  midway  be- 
tween the  two  was  The  Times,  which  in  its  neutral  position 


RECONSTRUCTION  PERIOD  319 

devoted  itself  to  a  definite  policy  of  reconstruction;  to  get  all 
the  news,  readers  were  forced  to  take  more  than  one  paper. 
Toward  the  close  of  the  period  newspapers,  in  spite  of  party 
affiliations,  had  partially  ceased  bitter  attacks  which  had  for- 
merly been  made  because  of  the  demands  of  party  rivalry.  They 
had  even  begun  to  print  items  which  reflected  upon  their  party; 
they  had  banished  the  former  policy  of  coloring  reports  lest  the 
truth  hurt  their  candidates:  most  important  of  all,  they  had 
learned  the  folly  of  printing  slander  against  rivals.  The  evolu- 
tion of  independent  journalism  has  ever  been  slow,  but  it  made 
a  most  appreciable  advance  during  the  Period  of  the  Reconstruc- 
tion. 

STANDARD   SET  BY  BOWLES 

Prominent  among  the  leaders  of  this  new  journalism  was 
Samuel  Bowles,  of  TheSprinpfald  Republican.  It  was  his  aim  to 
create  a  newspaper  rthat  should  stand  firmly  in  the  possession 
of  powers  of  its  own;  that  should  be  concerned  with  the  passing 
anor^oT^with  the  past;  that  should  perfectly  reflect  its  age,  aifd 
yet  should  be  itself  no  mere  reflection ;  that  should  control  what 
it  seemed  only  to  transcribe  and  narrate;  that  should  teach  with- 
out assuming  the  manners  of  an  instructor,  and  should  com- 
mand the  coming  times  with  a  voice  that  had  still  no  sound  but 
its  echo  of  the  present."  |  The  Republican  had  been  started  by  his 
father,  who,  having  learned  his  trade  in  Hartford,  Connecticut, 
put  a  small  hand-press  and  a  little  type  on  board  a  flatboat  and 
went  with  his  wife  to  Springfield,  Massachusetts,  where  he  issued 
the  first  number  on  September  8,  1824.  About  twenty  years 
later,  March  27,  1844,  it  had  commenced  daily  publication  and 
even  before  the  war  it  had  become  one  of  the  most  influential 
papers  of  the  provincial  press. 

PICRIC  JOURNALISM 

The  political  upheavals  of  the  early  Reconstruction  Period, 
however,  brought  a  temporary  relapse  of  the  bitter  personal 
journalism.  Its  picric  qualities,  on  the  other  hand,  may  have 
hastened  the  purification  process.  New  York  was  no  worse  than 
other  cities  in  this  respect,  but  it  attracted  more  attention  be- 


320       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

cause  of  the  prominence  of  its  editors.  One  of  the  worst  offend- 
ers was  Horace  Greeley,  of  The  Tribune.  For  his  special  benefit 
Raymond,  of  The  Times,  on  one  occasion  —  April  15,  1868  — 
published  a  "Lesson  on  Good  Manners  in  Journalism"  of  which 
the  following  was  a  part :  — 

The  Tribune  headed  a  leading  editorial  article  a  day  or  two  ago, 
"Governor  Seymour  as  a  Liar,"  and  proceeded  to  vindicate  the  epi- 
thet by  showing  that,  hi  a  political  speech  in  Connecticut,  Governor 
Seymour  had  largely  overstated  the  annual  expenses  of  the  govern- 
ment. The  World  came  to  the  Governor's  defense,  and  tried  to  show 
that  the  statements  he  had  made  were  substantially  correct;  where- 
upon The  Tribune  replies  statistically,  and  then  adds  that  the  editor 
of  The  World  is  a  liar  as  well  as  the  Governor.  And  in  yesterday's  issue 
The  Tribune  undertakes  to  vindicate  not  only  the  truth  of  its  statement, 
but  the  gentlemanly  character  and  perfect  propriety  of  its  language, 
" taking  issue,"  as  it  says,  with  the  code  that  assumes  that  it  is  "rude 
and  ungentlemanly"  to  call  a  man  a  liar,  and  insisting  that  "it  is  only 
the  liar  who  proves  himself  to  be  no  gentleman." 

We  do  not  propose  to  discuss  the  morality  of  lying,  or  the  manners 
of  men  guilty  of  it.  But  as  the  editor  of  The  Tribune  is  to  preside  at  the 
dinner  to  be  given  to  Mr.  Dickens  on  behalf  of  the  Press  of  the  United 
States,  and  thus  becomes  in  a  certain  sense  a  representative  of  Ameri- 
can newspapers,  we  deem  it  worth  while  to  dissent  from  his  theory 
of  journalistic  manners.  We  do  not  think  it  either  "gentlemanly"  or 
proper  for  a  newspaper  to  call  Governor  Seymour  or  any  other  man  a 
"liar,"  because  we  do  not  think  the  use  of  such  epithets  proper  any 
where.  Mr.  Greeley  would  not  use  them  in  conversation.  He  would  not 
use  them  in  personal  intercourse,  nor  would  he  invite  a  man  who  did 
use  them  to  social  relations  with  himself  or  his  family. 

In  a  reply  Greeley  said  in  The  Tribune:  — 

The  New  York  Times  favored  us  with  a  column  lecture  on  manners  and 
professional  courtesies  apropos  of  The  Tribune  and  Governor  Seymour, 
wherein  it  compared  the  matter  at  issue  between  us  to  the  diversity 
of  taste  between  two  gentlemen,  one  of  whom  should  prefer  to  eat  his 
beef  with  mustard,  the  other  without.  We  received  the  rebuke  with 
due  meekness,  and  only  ventured,  at  its  close,  to  propound  the  ques- 
tion, "Is  it  true  or  is  it  false  that  our  government  is  now  spending 
$300,000,000  per  annum,  apart  from  payments  on  account  of  the 
national  debt,  and  that  $150,000,000  of  this  is  the  cost  of  holding  the 
South  in  subjugation  by  means  of  a  great  standing  army?"  Hereupon 
The  Times  favors  us  with  another  column  of  moralities  and  courtesies, 
but  never  a  word  of  answer  to  our  questions.  It  appears  to  have  no 


RECONSTRUCTION  PERIOD  321 

choice  between  beef  with  mustard  and  beef  without.  .  .  .  We  would  have 
The  Times  use  such  terms  as  most  forcibly  express  its  ideas.  We  es- 
pecially beg  it  not  to  be  "mealy-mouthed"  in  speaking  of  The  Tribune. 

On  another  occasion  Grecley,  through  the  columns  of  The 
Tribune,  said  to  William  Cullen  Bryant,  of  The  New  York  Even- 
ing Post,  "You  lie,  you  villain,  you  sinfully,  wickedly,  basely 
lie."  This  time  Punchinello,  the  leading  cartoon  weekly  of  the 
period,  rebuked  on  May  28,  1870,  not  only  Greeley,  but  also 
other  editors  by  a  cartoon  entitled,  "  Editorial  Washing-Day  in 
New  York."  It  showed  the  editors  at  their  editorial  tubs  with 
Greeley 's  celebrated  "U-Lye-Soap,"  "guaranteed  to  remove  all 
stains,  impurities,  etc.,"  on  the  wash-boards.  In  connection 
with  its  cartoon  Punchinello  also  published  this  letter-press :  — 

Observe  Punchinello's  Cartoon,  in  which  you  shall  behold  the  edi- 
torial laundresses  of  New  York  City  having  a  washy  time  of  it  all 
around.  There  is  a  shriek  of  objurgation  in  the  air,  and  a  flutter  of 
soiled  linen  on  the  breeze.  Granny  Marble,  of  The  World,  to  the  extreme 
left  of  the  picture,  clenches  her  fists  over  the  pungent  suds,  and  looks 
fight  at  Granny  Jones  of  The  Times.  The  beaming  phiz  of  Granny 
Greeley  of  The  Tribune  looms  up  between  the  two,  like  the  sun  in  a  fog. 
But  the  real  Sun  in  a  fog  is  to  be  seen  to  the  extreme  right.  There  you 
behold  Granny  Dana  of  The  Sun,  shaking  her  brawny  bunch  of  fives 
in  the  face  of  Granny  Young  of  The  Standard,  whose  manner  of  wringing 
out  the  linen,  you  will  observe,  is  up  to  the  highest  Standard  of  that 
branch  of  art.  Further  away,  Granny  Tilton  of  The  Independent  flutters 
her  linen  with  spiteful  flourish,  nettled  by  the  vituperation  of  Granny 
Hastings  of  The  Commercial  Advertiser  who  hangs  up  her  Commercial 
clothes  on  the  line.  The  tableau  is  an  instructive  one;  and  it  is  to  be 
hoped  that  all  the  U-Lye  soaps  used  by  the  washerwomen  is  used  up 
by  this  time,  and  that  they  will  replace  it  with  some  having  a  sweeter 
perfume. 

In  this  remark  Punchinello  was  speaking  one  word  for  the 
paper  and  two  for  the  people,  who  had  grown  tired  of  the  bitter 
personal  quarrels  of  editors  who  were  continually  hurling  the  lie 
with  or  without  adjectives  at  each  other. 

PICRIC   JOURNALISM    IN  THE   WEST 

Picric  journalism,  however,  died  slowly.  In  the  West  it  sur- 
vived after  it  had  become  a  thing  of  the  past  in  the  East.  In 


322       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

October,  1871,  it  was  vigorously  defended  at  the  Annual  Con- 
vention of  the  Kansas  Editors'  and  Publishers'  Association  by 
Captain  Henry  King,  who  later  achieved  such  distinction  while 
editor  of  The  St.  Louis  Globe-Democrat.  Captain  King  believed 
in  personalities  and  thought  the  journalist  was  never  so  power- 
ful as  when  he  was  personal.  By  way  of  proof  he  cited  the  case 
of  Nathan,  who  first  preached  general  principles,  in  the  form  of 
a  parable,  to  David,  but  who  was  unable  to  move  the  guilty 
monarch  until  he  pointed  a  finger  of  scorn  and  asserted,  "Thou 
Art  The  Man."  The  most  influential  editors,  according  to  Cap- 
tain King,  had  been  exceedingly  and  often  offensively  personal 
in  their  criticism  and  to  take  it  out  of  journalism  would  mean 
descent  into  bankruptcy.  "Banish  the  words  blackguard,  liar, 
and  villain  from  our  newspapers  and  even  the  l  good  and  useful ' 
Greeley  would  quit  the  business  in  disgust,"  was  the  way  he  put 
it.  Personal  journalism  to  Captain  King  meant  the  application 
of  such  words  only  to  scoundrels  and  rascals  who  could  be 
effectively  denounced  in  no  other  way.  In  its  modified  form 
personal  journalism  survived  in  the  West  until  a  much  later 
period. 

Evidently  certain  members  of  the  first  Kansas  Legislature  did 
not  hold  the  views  advocated  by  Captain  King,  for  one  member, 
a  Mr.  McMeekin,  moved  that  if  any  reporter  of  a  Kansas  news- 
paper vilified  any  member  of  the  Legislature,  the  member  so 
vilified  should  be  authorized  and  expected  to  thrash  the  repre- 
sentative of  the  press  who  made  the  attack.  Captain  King, 
however,  thought  that  by  such  a  scheme  aggrieved  parties  could 
obtain  satisfaction  more  surely  and  promptly  than  by  libel  suits 
and  that  offending  editors  could  escape  the  expense  and  annoy- 
ance of  court  attendance.  The  resolution  proposed  by  Mr. 
McMeekin,  however,  did  not  pass  the  Legislature,  owing  to  the 
opposition  of  the  Kansas  press. 

PRESS   ON   WHEELS 

No  history  of  American  journalism  would  be  complete  without 
some  mention  of  Tfo  Frontier  Index  which,  true  to  its  name,  was 
published  on  the  frontier~and  was  literally  a  press  on  wheels. 
Though  published  at  twenty-five  different  places  along  the  line 


RECONSTRUCTION   PERIOD  323 

of  the  Western  advance,  it  was  founded  at  Old  Kearny  City, 
Nebraska  Territory,  in  May,  ISGGj  by  F.  K.  and  L.  R.  Freeman, 
two  brothers  who  had  come  West  from  Culpeper  County,  Vir- 
ginia. It  was  printed  on  an  old-time  hand-roller  press  which  had 
been  abandoned  by  General  Joseph  E.  Johnston,  who  prior  to 
1861  had  been  in  command  of  the  United  States  troops  in  the 
Far  Western  territories. 

The  Frontier  Index  in  the  fall  of  1866  was  taken  by  three  ox 
teams  driven  by  Mexican  greasers  to  a  temporary  terminus  of 
the  Union  Pacific  Construction  Company  at  North  Platte.  As 
soon  as  the  site  was  laid  out  for  this  mushroom  terminal  station, 
some  four  thousand  adventurers  flocked  there  to  live  in  tents 
and  portable  houses,  and  The  Index  did  a  "land  office"  business 
in  printing  small  circulars  for  which  it  charged  twenty  dollars 
for  one  hundred  words.  The  next  move  was  to  Julesberg  in 
January,  1867.  In  forty-eight  hours  North  Platte  was  depop- 
ulated after  the  inhabitants  moved  to  the  new  terminus  which 
The  Index  was  the  first  enterprise  to  reach.  Another  place  of 
publication  was  Laramie  City,  one  hundred  and  five  miles  west 
of  Cheyenne.  While  published  at  this  place  The  Index  received 
a  large  subscription  list  and  an  extensive  advertising  contract 
from  Brigham  Young,  of  Salt  Lake  City.  To  continue  the  trail 
followed  by  The  Frontier  Index  would  be  to  publish  a  list  of  the 
temporary  terminals  of  the  Pacific  railroad.  On  one  or  two  oc- 
casions when  The  Frontier  Index  was  being  moved  its  wagon 
train  was  held  up  by  Indians,  who  took  no  pains  to  conceal  their 
disgust  when  they  found  that  the  ox  carts  contained  nothing 
except  the  printing  outfit.  The  trail  ended  for  The  Frontier 
Index  at  North  Yakima,  Washington. 

MISFORTUNES   OF   GREELEY 

C^The  acceptance  by  Horace  Greeley  of  the  presidential  nomin- 
ation in  1872  to  run  against  Grant,  the  regular  candidate  of  the 
Republican  Party,  was  most  unfortunate.  He  resigned  the  editor- 
ship of  The  Tribune  and  was  never  again  in  supreme  control. 
He  was  caricatured  with  all  the  picric  qualities  of  the  period. 
The  opposition  press  was  filled  with  burlesques  of  "The  Liberal 
Candidate,"  in  which  his  familiar  white  hat  and  linen  duster 


324       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

were  prominently  portrayed.  The  people  refused  to  take  his 
nomination  seriously,  for  since  the  foundation  of  The  Tribune 
he  had  opposed  the  party  whose  standard-bearer  he  became. 
Because  of  the  caricatures  spread  over  the  country  Greeley  was 
forced  to  take  the  stump,  "not  to  advocate  political  claims,  but 
to  show  that  he  retained  some  semblance  of  the  human  form." 
The  illness  of  his  wife  later  demanded  his  constant  presence  at 
her  bedside,  day  and  night,  until  her  death  just  seven  days 
before  his  crushing  defeat  at  the  ballot  box.  On  November  7, 
1872,  Greeley  published  a  note  under  his  own  signature  "that 
the  undersigned  resumed  the  editorship  of  The  Tribune  which  he 
relinquished  on  embarking  on  another  business  six  months  ago." 
That  Greeley  assumed  the  editorship  only  in  name  was  shown 
by  the  insertion  of  another  editorial  —  not  from  Greeley's  pen 
—  entitled  "Crumbs  of  Comfort."  In  the  second  editorial  men- 
tion was  made  that  "every  red-nosed  politician  who  had  cheated 
the  caucus  and  fought  at  the  polls  looked  to  the  editor  of  The 
Tribune  to  secure  an  appointment  as  a  gauger,  or  as  an  army 
chaplain,  or  as  Minister  to  France";  and  that  in  frequent  in- 
stances the  editor  of  The  Tribune  was  telegraphed  in  frantic  haste 
to  come  to  the  Capitol  to  "save  this  bill,  to  crush  that  one,  to 
promote  one  project  and  to  stop  another."  A  crumb  of  comfort 
was  that  office-seekers  would  now  keep  aloof  from  the  defeated 
candidate  who  had  not  influence  enough  to  get  any  one  ap- 
pointed as  "a  deputy  sub-assistant  temporary  clerk  in  the  paste- 
pot  section  of  the  folding-room  at  Washington." 

Greeley's  amazement  at  reading  the  second  editorial  must 
have  been  greater  than  that  of  any  of  the  subscribers.  In  vain 
did  he  try  to  secure  the  insertion  of  the  following  note  of  correc- 
tion :  — 

By  some  unaccountable  fatality,  an  article  entitled  "Crumbs  of 
Comfort"  crept  into  our  last,  unseen  by  the  editor,  which  does  him 
the  grossest  wrong.  It  is  true  that  office  seekers  used  to  pester  him  for 
recommendations  when  his  friends  controlled  the  custom  house,  though 
the  "red  nosed"  variety  was  seldom  found  among  them;  it  is  not  true 
that  he  ever  obeyed  a  summons  to  Washington  in  order  that  he  might 
there  promote  or  oppose  this  or  that  private  scheme.  In  short,  the 
article  is  a  monstrous  fable,  based  on  some  other  experience  than  that 
of  any  editor  of  this  journal. 


RECONSTRUCTION  PERIOD  325 

In  justice  to  those  in  control  of  The  Tribune  at  the  time,  it 
must  be  confessed  that  the  newspaper  was  in  an  extremely  em- 
barrassing position  because  of  its  relations  to  the  two  political 
parties:  founded  to  support  one,  it  had  for  some  months  past 
been  ardently  supporting  the  other.  But  for  its  great  vitality 
and  this  public  announcement  of  its  position,  it  doubtless  would 
have  succumbed  with  its  founder,  who,  after  his  mind  had  given 
way,  died  on  November  29,  1872. 

DANA'S  ATTACKS  ON  GRANT 

Of  all  the  newspaper  critics  of  Grant's  Administration,  the 
most  bitter  was  unquestionably  The  New  York  Sun,  which  was 
under  the  editorship  of  Charles  Anderson  Dana.  Forced  from 
the  position  as  managing  editor  of  The  Tribune  by  Greeley,  Dana 
had  gone  to  Washington  in  November,  1862,  as  Second  Assistant 
Secretary  of  War.  Resigning  this  position  on  July  1,  1865,  he 
returned  to  journalism  as  editor  of  The  Daily  Republican,  which 
had  just  been  started  in  Chicago,  and  which  undoubtedly  would 
have  been  successful  had  it  not  been  so  severely  handicapped  for 
lack  of  funds  and  by  political  dissention  among  its  owners.  After 
a  vain  struggle  of  about  a  year,  Dana  became  so  discouraged  that 
he  resolved  to  leave  and  go  to  New  York,  expecting  either  to 
buy  or  to  start  a  newspaper.  His  previous  connection  with  The 
New  York  Tribune  had  brought  him  in  contact  with  several  men 
of  wealth,  so  that  he  had  little  difficulty  in  raising  the  necessary 
capital  to  commence  a  new  paper  when  he  was  offered  The  Sun 
for  $175,000.  He  accepted  the  offer  and  on  January  25,  1868^ 
announced  his  policies  as  follows:  - 

The  Sun  will  continue  to  be  an  independent  newspaper,  wearing  the 
livery  of  no  party  and  discussing  public  questions  and  the  acts  of 
public  men  on  their  merits  alone.  It  will  be  guided,  as  it  has  been 
hitherto,  by  uncompromising  loyalty  to  the  Union,  and  will  resist 
every  attempt  to  weaken  the  bonds  that  unite  the  American  people 
into  one  nation. 

Of  the  acts  of  public  men  those  of  Grant  received  the  most 
attention.  Henry  Watterson  summed  up  the  situation  in  the 
following  editorial,  headed,  "One  Who  Hates  The  /Sunlight":  — 


326       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

There  is  only  one  man  that  objects  to  The  Sun  violently,  and  that 
is  Grant.  He  sees  nothing  but  spots  on  it.  The  very  sound  of  the  word 
is  so  hateful  to  him  that  he  loathes  the  whole  solar  system. 

In  the  platform  of  The  Sun  for  1872  Dana  advocated  numerous 
reforms.  Among  them  were  that  both  Grantism  and  Tweedism 
be  abolished  by  laws  for  the  summary  punishment  of  present- 
taking  and  bribe-taking  as  well  as  of  public  robbery;  that  polit- 
ical rights  be  restored  to  all  persons  concerned  in  the  late  rebel- 
lion; that  the  civil  service  be  so  reformed  that  appointments  to 
office  no  longer  depend  on  party  patronage;  and  that  the  Presi- 
dent cannot  appoint  his  own  relatives  or  those  of  his  wife  to 
office.  When,  however,  The  Sun  linked  together  the  names  of 
Grant  and  John  Barleycorn  the  reading  public  of  New  York 
resented  this  Sunstroke.  It  cancelled  its  subscription,  but  The 
Sun  shone  on.  The  Sun  was  but  a  typical  representative  of  a 
portion  of  the  press  which  was  most  bitter  in  attacking  this 
weakness  of  Grant.  David  Dudley  Field  said  in  a  magazine 
article  in  1876  that  the  following  item  was  a  fair  sample  in  the 
press  opposed  to  the  Administration:  — 

"Periodical  Neuralgia"  is  what  they  call  it  in  Washington  now. 
Grant  has  it,  and  has  not  been  able  to  see  visitors  for  several  days. 
Parson  Newman  prayed  for  him  on  yesterday,  and  the  parson's  inti- 
mate relations  with  Divine  Providence,  backed  by  continued  liberal 
doses  of  hydrate  of  chloral,  justify  the  hope  that  the  patient  will  get 
his  nerves  steadied  in  a  day  or  two. 

"THE  BITER  BIT" 

Other  newspapers  were  just  as  bitter  toward  Grant,  and  The 
Sun  has  been  selected  for  illustration  simply  because  of  its 
greater  prominence.  The  assertion  has  been  frequently  made 
that  the  hostility  of  The  Sun  to  the  Grant  Administration  was 
due  to  the  fact  that  its  editor  had  not  been  appointed  to  the 
Collectorship  of  the  Port  of  New  York.  Those  who  knew  Dana 
best  denied  most  emphatically  the  truth  of  such  an  assertion, 
and  pointed  out  that  the  editor  of  The  Sun  never  criticized  the 
military  tactics  of  Grant,  but  only  those  acts  of  his  Administra- 
tion which  demanded  condemnation.  The  enemies  of  Dana,  how- 
ever, inspired  the  publication  of  a  pamphlet  entitled  "The  Biter 


RECONSTRUCTION  PERIOD  327 

Bit,"  which  was  supposed  to  be  "a  narrative  of  some  of  the 
blackmailing  operations  of  Charles  A.  Dana's  Sun."  "The 
Biter  Bit/'  however,  did  not  shake  the  confidence  of  the  friends 
or  acquaintances  of  Dana  in  his  integrity  as  a  journalist,  nor 
did  it  affect  Dana's  own  confidence  in  Amos  Cummings  or  Isaac 
Ingland  or  any  of  the  other  subordinates  who  came  over  to  The 
Sun  from  The  Tribune  and  were  incidentally  assailed  in  this 
scurrilous  pamphlet. 

TOMBSTONE   CARTOON   PUBLISHED 

The  most  biting  rays  which  The  Sun  shed  on  Grant  appeared 
on  November  30,  1876,  when  The  Sun  published  in  its  columns  a 
pieture  of  a  tombstone  with  the  following  inscription:  - 

Sacred 

To  the  Memory  of 
American  Liberty 

Born 
July  4,  1776 

Died 

At  Columbia,  S.GJ 

By  Order  of 

Ulysses  I 

November  28,  1876 
Age  100  yrs.,  4  mo.,  24  days 

DANA'S  ATTACK  ON  HAYES 

After  the  great  political  conflict  of  1876,  which  declared  that 
Hayes  had  been  elected,  The  Sun  turned  its  rays  from  Grant  to 
the  new  President.  On  Saturday,  March  3,  1877,  when  Hayes 
was  about  to  take  office,  The  Sun  came  out  with  inverted  column 
rules,  thus  giving  the  paper  the  appearance  of  mourning.  Upon 
his  first  visit  after  the  election  to  New  York,  The  Sun  found  a 
spot  on  May  14,  1877,  for  his  picture  with  the  word  "Fraud" 
printed  across  his  forehead.  Under  the  picture  it  published  this 
quotation  from  Charles  Francis  Adams:  "A  person  who  must 
forever  carry  upon  his  brow  the  stamp  of  fraud  first  triumphant 
in  American  history.  No  subsequent  action  can  wash  away  the 
letters  of  that  record."  It  again  reprinted  the  picture  on  May  15, 
when  Hayes  was  still  in  the  city. 


328       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

DANA   AND   HIS   PAPER 

Nothing  under  the  sun  could  make  Dana  move  his  paper  from 
the  orbit  he  had  once  outlined  and  he  was  most  fertile  in  thinking 
up  something  new  for  his  paper.  It  was,  however,  his  mode  of 
treatment  rather  than  his  news  that  made  The  Sun  so  distinctly 
a  newspaper-man's  paper.  After  assuming  the  editorship  of  The 
Sun,  Dana  outlined  in  his  first  issue  how  the  news  would  be 
treated  in  the  future:  "It  will  study  condensation,  clearness, 
point,  and  will  endeavor  to  present  its  daily  photograph  of  the 
world's  doings  in  the  most  luminous  and  lively  manner."  This 
determination  to  tell  the  news  "hi  the  most  luminous  and  lively 
manner"  gave  such  a  peculiar  style  to  items  in  The  Sun  that  it 
became  possible  to  distinguish  a  story  handled  in  Dana's  way, 
whether  it  appeared  in  his  own  newspaper  or  in  The  Tombstone 
Epitaph.  Dana  applied  the  same  mode  of  treatment  to  his  edi- 
torials. In  1880  he  referred  to  General  Hancock,  then  a  presi- 
dential candidate,  as  "a  good  man,  weighing  two  hundred  and 
forty  pounds."  It  was  Dana,  and  the  men  whom  he  trained,  who 
gave  the  editorial  essays  of  The  Sun  that  distinctly  literary  charm 
which  did  much  to  soothe  the  anger  aroused  by  the  vituperative 
political  squibs  in  neighboring  columns.  For  the  struggling  poet 
of  merit  Dana  always  found  a  place  in  The  Sun.  No  finer  tribute 
was  ever  paid  Dana  in  this  connection  than  the  one  which  came 
from  the  pen  of  Eugene  Field. 

FRANCO-PRUSSIAN   WAR 

During  the  Franco-Prussian  War,  The  Neio  York  Tribune 
spent  unusually  large  sums  in  reporting  that  conflict.  Practically 
no  attention  was  paid  to  the  cable  tolls.  Short  as  was  this  war, 
The  Tribune  paid  for  its  telegraphic  news  $83,303.51;  its  addi- 
tional bill  for  this  correspondence  —  also  paid  in  gold  —  was 
$42,263.46.  Such  lavish  expenditure  was  then  unknown  in  jour- 
nalism, in  spite  of  the  expense  to  which  papers  had  been  put  for 
correspondence  during  the  War  of  the  States.  The  Tribune 
rapidly  achieved  such  a  reputation  for  being  first  in  war 
news  that  it  disputed  this  field  with  The  Herald.  For  the  sake 
of  comparison  Whitelaw  Reid  furnished  the  following  figures 


RECONSTRUCTION  PERIOD 


329 


for  The  Times  and  The  Tribune  during  the  year  1863  of  the 
Civil  War:  — 


Expense 

Tribune 

Times 

Editors  and  correspondence,  not  war 

$49,228 

$45,660 

War  Correspondence  

25,706 

14,040 

Compositors  

49,547 

45,741 

Special  telegraphing  

12,623 

7,817 

Supplements,  Tribune,  21,  Times,  11  

9,000 

4,730 

At  just  about  the  time  that  The  Tribune  would  have  reaped 
the  benefits  of  its  Franco-Prussian  enterprise,  it  was  over- 
shadowed by  the  activities  of  The  New  York  Times  in  exposing 
the  famous  Tweed  Ring. 

EXPOSURE   OF   TWEED   RING 

After  the  death  of  Raymond,  Lewis  J.  Jennings  became  the 
editor  of  The  New  York  Times.  How  Boss  Tweed  and  his  Ring 
had  secureT  control  of  New  York  at  a  loss  to  the  city  of  mil- 
lions of  dollars  is  a  story,  too  long  to  be  told  in  this  book. 
Attacks  on  their  graft  appesfred  in  The  Times  long  before  that 
paper  had  absolute  proof  of  the  facts,  though  of  the  frauds  of  the 
Ring  there  could  be  no  question.  On  July  28,  1871,  The  Times 
came  out  with  a  special  supplement  in  which  it  exposed  the 
gigantic  frauds  of  the  Ring,  and  published  the  astounding  bills 
of  furniture  dealers,  carpenters,  plasterers,  and  plumbers  —  in 
other  words,  $9,789,482.16  had  been  signed  away  without  ques- 
tion for  repairs  and  furniture  for  the  new  Court-House,  etc.  This 
issue  of  The  Times  sold  by  hundreds  of  thousands.  Even  the 
Mayor  of  New  York  was  forced  to  admit  that  the  bills  were 
perhaps  exorbitant.  But  Tweed  only  asked  the  cynical  question 
—  "  What  are  you  going  to  do  about  it?"  The  accounts  of  the 
swindle  in  The  Times,  aided  by  the  cartoons  of  Nast  in  Harper's 
Weekly,  so  aroused  the  people  that  they  overthrew  the  Tweed 
Ring  and  sent  many  of  its  members  to  jail.  All  of  this  is,  of 
course,  an  old  story,  but  it  permitted  The  Times  to  say  with 
Othello,  to  quote  a  quotation  of  the  present  editor  of  that 
paper,  "I  have  done  the  State  some  service." 


330       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 


ATTITUDE   OF   TWEED   TOWARD   NEW  YORK   PRESS 

During  the  days  when  Tweed  controlled  New  York,  it  is  as- 
serted that  eighty-nine  newspapers  were  on  his  pay-roll  and 
that  after  the  exposure  of  the  Ring  by  The  New  York  Times, 
twenty-seven  of  these  papers,  which  had  depended  upon  city 
plunder  for  existence,  were  compelled  to  suspend.  The  records 
showed  that  messages  of  the  Mayor  which  the  reading  public 
accepted  as  news  were  really  paid  advertisements  charged  to  the 
city  at  the  rate  of  one  dollar  a  line.  During  the  Tweed  regime 
some  of  the  smaller  evening  papers  received  an  annual  subsidy 
of  one  thousand  dollars  a  month.  Unsettled  newspaper  claims 
from  various  papers  totaled  over  two  millions.  A  remarkable 
thing  connected  with  the  Tweed  control  was  the  fact  that  two 
hundred  dollars  a  year  was  voted  by  the  Aldermen  to  reporters 
for  omitting  to  report  the  activities  of  the  Aldermen. 

The  attitude  of  Tweed  toward  the  New  York  press  Punchi- 
nello portrayed  in  a  cartoon  of  contentment:  it  showed  Tweed 
smoking  his  Tammany  peace  pipe  while  on  the  bowl  sat  a  re- 
porter to  represent  the  newspapers  of  the  city.  To  the  latter 
Tweed  said,  according  to  the  cartoon:  "Say,  young  man,  ain't 
you  afraid  you'll  burn  your  breeches?"  This  remark  was  but  a 
repetition  of  a  better-known  Tweed  twitter,  "Well,  what  are 
you  going  to  do  about  it?"  What  the  people  did  about  it  was  to 
tan  thoroughly  the  hide  of  the  Tammany  Tiger. 

SIMILAR   EXPOSURE   OF  WHISKEY   RING 

Somewhat  similar  to  the  exposure  of  the  Tweed  Ring  by  The 
New  York  Times  was  the  exposure  of  the  Whiskey  Ring  by  The 
St.  Louis  Democrat.  This  Ring  was  organized  in  St.  Louis  to 
defraud  the  Government  of  the  revenue  tax  from  the  distillers. 
A  large  fund  was  raised  to  bribe  the  Government  officials  and 
"to  put  the  soft  pedal"  on  St.  Louis  papers. 

The  exposure  of  this  Ring  was  due  to  the  activity  of  George 
Fishback,  editor  of  The  St.  Louis  Democrat,  who  secured  the 
appointment  of  Myron  Colony,  the  financial  editor  of  The 
Democrat,  as  a  special  agent  to  expose  the  frauds.  Colony  was 
supposedly  gathering  commercial  statistics  for  The  Democrat, 


RECONSTRUCTION  PERIOD  331 

and  obtained  bills  of  lading  of  all  shipments  out  of  St.  Louis.  He 
paid  no  attention  to  any  save  those  of  distilled  liquors.  The  dis- 
crepancies between  these  bills  of  lading  and  the  records  furnished 
the  internal  revenue  office  gave  him  the  material  for  his  great 
exposure.  After  The  St.  Louis  Democrat  had  once  started  the 
work,  it  was  materially  aided  by  many  newspapers  in  other 
cities.  Yet  so  powerful  was  the  Ring  that  a  congressional 
amendment  in  the  matter  of  libel,  called  by  the  newspapers  the 
" Press  Gag  Law,"  was  passed.  Just  as  the  Sedition  Law,  men- 
tioned in  an  earlier  chapter,  aided  in  the  defeat  of  the  Federal 
Party,  so  the  Press  Gag  Law  undoubtedly  had  much  to  do  with 
the  Democratic  victories  which  followed  in  1874  in  many  of  the 
States.  Several  men  whom  Grant  had  appointed  to  public  office 
were  involved  in  these  whiskey  scandals. 

REVIVAL   OF  RELIGIOUS   JOURNALISM 

At  the  time  of  the  relapse  into  bitter  personal  journalism, 
there  was  in  the  East  a  revival  of  religious  journalism.  Among 
the  few  daily  newspapers  with  religious  leanings  started  during 
this  time  was  The  Boston  Daily  News  which  began  publication 
"every  forenoon  and  afternoon"  on  July  19,  1869.  Its  editor, 
E.  P.  Marvin,  asked  his  subscribers,  on  October  11, 1869,  to  wait 
a  day  for  the  marriage  of  The  Boston  Daily  News  with  The  Boston 
Daily  Tribune,  as  the  object  of  the  union  was  to  "  increase  the 
strength  and  permanency  of  the  advocacy  of  the  great  moral 
questions  of  the  day  of  which  temperance  is  prominent." 

With  the  issue  of  December  24,  1869,  the  Reverend  E.  D. 
Win  slow,  who  had  had  practical  experience  with  church  week- 
lies, became  associated  with  The  Daily  News.  In  1870  The 
Boston  Daily  News  boasted  of  being  "a  moral,  religious  daily." 
It  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  it  gave  "all  the  news  for  a 
penny  a  day."  In  May,  1875,  the  Reverend  Winslow  bought 
The  Boston  Post,  but  in  completing  the  transaction  he  made  the 
"trifling"  mistake  of  committing  forgery,  which  was  not  dis- 
covered, however,  until  several  months  later.  When  the  facts 
of  the  case  were  made  public,  Winslow  fled  to  Holland  and  The 
News  continued  publication  for  a  short  time,  but  on  February  11, 
1876,  it  announced  its  last  edition  with  that  issue  because  the 


332       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

affairs  of  the  newspaper  were  so  involved  with  those  of  Mr.  Wins- 
low  that  legal  obstacles  made  the  suspension  necessary.  The 
stigma  which  was  attached  to  The  Boston  Daily  News  did  much 
to  dampen  the  religious  ardor  of  those  who  had  planned  to 
establish  daily  religious  newspapers  in  other  cities,  for  The 
Boston  Daily  News  had  not  practiced  what  it  preached. 

A  decade  after  the  attempt  in  New  York  City  to  found  The 
World  as  a  daily  religious  newspaper,  The  New  York  Daily  Wit- 
ness, "a  Christian,  one-cent,  afternoon  newspaper,"  appeared. 
It  started  on  July  1,  1871,  and  aimed  not  only  to  be  religious  in 
character,  but  also  "to  give  the  news  of  the  day  and  much  excel- 
lent family  reading  besides."  It  inserted  no  advertisements  of 
"  liquors,  theaters,  lotteries,  or  anything  inconsistent  with  its 
character."  It  failed  to  receive  the  financial  support  it  ex- 
pected and  was  fittingly  interred  in  the  newspaper  graveyard 
alongside  of  its  more  secular  companions.  No  attempt  to  found 
a  daily  religious  newspaper  was  successful  until  Mary  Baker 
Eddy  started  The  Christian  Science  Monitor  in  Boston  on 
Wednesday,  November  25,  1908. 

RECONSTRUCTION  OF  SOUTHERN  PRESS 

During  the  Reconstruction  Period,  The  Charleston  Mercury 
was  revived  in  1867  under  Colonel  R.  Barnwell  R~hett,  ~Jr.  At 
about  this  time  South  Carolina  was  holding  its  Reconstruction 
Convention  which  was  spoken  of  in  Charleston  as  "the  ring- 
streaked  and  striped  convention."  A  secret  editorial  conference 
of  The  Mercury  was  held,  and  in  spite  of  some  objection  it  was 
decided  "to  make  any  attempt  to  establish  a  mongrel  govern- 
ment in  South  Carolina  a  stench  in  the  nostrils  of  the  public  and 
to  make  the  odium  of  it  too  great  for  white  men  to  bear."  The 
Mercury  then  proceeded  to  publish  the  careers  of  all  the  "  carpet- 
baggers and  scallywags  "  then  running  for  office.  The  articles 
were  illustrated  with  numerous  cartoons  showing  the  carpet- 
baggers and  the  negro  delegates  to  the  Reconstruction  Conven- 
tion in  the  most  ridiculous  juxtapositions.  So  well  did  The 
Mercury  carry  out  its  purpose  that  to  this  day  the  stigma  of 
"Republicanism  and  Mongrelism"  remain  odious  in  South 
Carolina. 


RECONSTRUCTION  PERIOD  333 

But  The  Charleston  Mercury,  which  before  the  war  had  been 
the  chief  organ  of  the  secession  press  of  South  Carolina,  sus- 
pended publication  in  November,  1868.  Its  suspension  was  the 
more  remarkable  because  The  Mercury  as  late  as  August,  1868, 
had  the  largest  circulation  of  any  newspaper  in  the  State.  The 
reason  given  by  its  editor,  R.  B.  Rhett,  Jr.,  was  that  he  desired 
to  "  take  his  place  among  the  ruined  children  of  the  South  —  bet- 
ter so  than  to  be  the  proudest  and  most  honored  of  her  success- 
ful enemies  —  and  to  wait,  hoping,  praying,  expecting  the  bright 
coming  of  a  final  deliverance,  the  independence  and  prosperity 
of  the  South." 

CARPET-BAGGERS  AND   THEIR   ORGANS 

To  offset  the  political  influence  of  the  older  Democratic 
sheets,  numerous  papers  were  started  in  the  South  as  Republican 
organs  to  promote  political  schemes  of  Northern  carpet-baggers. 
Again,  South  Carolina  may  be  taken  by  way  of  illustration. 
Most  of  its  new  papers  were  published  in  the  interest  of  what 
the  old  Southern  press  called  "Thad  Stevens's  Ring-streaked' 
Rule  and  Negro  Misrule."  The  South  Carolina  Ledger,  edited 
by  Allen  Coffin  at  Charleston,  had  as  its  motto,  "Free  Labor 
and  General  Reforms."  The  local  press  revised  this  motto  to 
read,  "Free  Lunch  and  General  Graft."  Lieutenant-Governor 
A.  J.  Ransier,  of  South  Carolina,  had  his  special  organ  to  which 
he  gave  the  rather  sanctimonious  name  of  The  Missionary 
Record,  but  which  the  regular  established  press  of  Charleston 
looked  upon  as  an  incendiary  newspaper,  as  it  appealed  to  the 
passions  of  the  negro.  The  South  Carolina  Republican  was  an- 
other carpet-bag  newspaper  printed  in  the  interest  of  Northern 
political  control.  The  Columbia  Union  was  also  a  radical  paper 
edited  by  a  carpet-bagger  afterwards  convicted  of  forgery. 

The  various  methods  resorted  to  by  Congress  to  reconstruct 
the  South  brought  about  many  unfortunate  evils  which  were 
continually  placed  before  the  people  by  the  press.  Naturally, 
the  Force  Bill  of  1870-71,  by  which  the  Federal  judges  tried 
those  indicted  for  depriving  a  man  of  his  privileges  under  the 
Constitution,  were  criticized  by  the  press  of  the  South,  especially 
where  Federal  arms  were  used  to  enforce  the  law. 


334       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Such  acts  of  the  Northern  carpet-baggers  frequently  drew 
forth  the  ire  of  Southern  editors.  Particularly  was  this  true  in 
New  Orleans,  where  The  Bulletin  in  1874  attacked  so  bitterly  the 
Reconstruction  Government  in  a  series  of  articles  that  a  pitched 
battle  finally  resulted  on  Canal  Street  with  a  comparatively 
heavy  loss  of  life.  The  Bulletin,  in  apologizing  to  its  subscribers 
for  its  meager  report  of  the  battle,  offered  by  way  of  explana- 
tion the  excuse  that  the  whole  staff  of  the  paper  was  in  the  fighb 
and  consequently  could  do  no  reporting.  At  Columbia,  South 
Carolina,  John  T.  Sloan  was  expelled  by  the  House  on  January 
15, 1869,  for  denouncing  in  his  correspondence  to  The  Charleston 
Courier  the  attempt  to  turn  out  the  white  professors  and  to 
substitute  negroes  at  the  State  University. 

In  Memphis,  Tennessee,  The  Appeal  had  two  or  three  fights 
with  the  Reconstructionists  before  it  accepted  the  results  of 
the  war  and  began  its  great  work  of  rebuilding  Tennessee  in 
general  and  Memphis  in  particular. 

The  Southern  press  was  practically  unanimous  in  its  support 
of  the  movement  to  disfranchise  the  negro.  But  almost  without 
exception  it  insisted  that  nothing  should  be  done  that  would  in 
any  way  violate  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States.  Some 
of  the  newspapers  were  very  frank  in  acknowledging  that  the 
new  constitutional  conventions  were  designed  to  overthrow 
negro  control,  provided  nothing  be  done  to  conflict  with  the  laws 
of  the  United  States.  In  this  movement  to  avoid  negro  suffrage 
the  South  was  seldom  condemned  by  the  press  of  the  North. 
Even  Republican  organs,  in  confessing  that  such  suffrage  as 
had  been  tried  was  a  failure,  admitted  that  the  movement  to  get 
rid  of  ignorance  and  superstition  at  the  ballot-box  was  par- 
donable. 

ORGANS   OF  KU-KLUX   KLAN 

One  of  the  methods  employed  to  keep  colored  voters  from  the 
polls  of  the  South  was  the  organization  in  Tennessee  of  a  secret 
society  called  the  Ku-Klux  Klan.  It  was  really  a  revival  of  the 
night  patrol  of  slavery  days  when  a  negro  was  not  allowed  to 
be  away  from  home  without  a  pass  from  his  owner.  The  chief 
purpose  of  this  organization  seemed  to  be  to  prey  upon  the  super- 


RECONSTRUCTION  PERIOD  335 

stitions  of  the  negro.  Some  method  of  restraining  the  negro  was 
undoubtedly  necessary,  but  no  excuse  existed  for  the  severities 
which  the  Ku-Klux  Klan  later  adopted  in  other  States.  In  fact, 
its  extreme  violence  was  deprecated  even  in  the  South.  The  or- 
ganization had  its  special  organs  which  wielded  at  one  time 
much  influence.  Of  these,  The  Independent  Monitor  at  Tuska- 
loosa,  Alabama,  was  a  typical  illustration. 

NEW   PAPERS  AND   OTHERS 

During  the  period  of  the  Reconstruction,  many  of  the  papers 
of  the  South,  which  had  suspended  on  account  of  the  war,  were 
revived.  In  addition,  many  other  papers  were  born  both  in  the 
North  and  South.  Lack  of  space  —  no  editorial  fib  —  permits 
only  the  briefest  mention  of  some  of  the  more  important.  In 
Nashville  The  Republican  Banner  resumed  publication  on  Sep- 
tember 27, 1865,  and  was  followed  by  The  Union  and  American 
on  December  5,  1865.  The  following  year  the  latter  absorbed 
The  Dispatch,  a  paper  born  during  the  war,  and  in  the  beginning 
used  the  type  of  the  old  Republican  Banner.  Subscribers  to  each 
of  these  revived  papers  received  from  carriers  on  September  1, 
1875,  a  united  sheet  called  The  American  —  a  most  appropriate 
title  for  the  new  era  dawning  in  the  South.  Under  this  title 
it  continued  publication  until  September  26,  1910,  when  it 
absorbed  The_ Nashville  Tennessean.  The  Courier  of  Louisville, 
Kentucky,  which  had  died  at  Nashville  in  the  winter  of  1861-62, 
was  revived  at  its  old  home  by  its  founder  and  owner,  Walter  N. 
Haldeman.  In  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  several  papers  ap- 
peared to  divide  the  field  with  The  Courier.  Among  these  were 
The  Charleston  Daily  News,  started  on  August  14, 1865;  The  Jour- 
nal of  Commerce,  edited  by  Colonel  R.  B.  Rhett,  Jr.,  formerly 
the  editor  of  The  Charleston  Mercury  and  later  editor  of  The 
New  Orleans  Picayune;  The  Sun;  The  World;  The  Budget;  The 
Evening  Post;  The  Charleston  Review,  etc.  In  New  Orleans, 
The  Times,  which  had  started  on  September  20,  1863,  united 
1  on  December  4,  1881,  with  The  Democrat  which  had  started  on 
\  December  18,  1875.  The  first  of  these  two  papers  had  been  the 
leading  force  in  the  settlement  of  the  political  differences  of  the 
period  and  in  reporting  the  revival  of  the  progress  in  Louisiana. 


336       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

It  was  The  Times  which  bitterly  denounced  the  Republican  Re- 
turning Board  which  gave  the  election  to  Hayes.  The  Daily 
States,  established  January  3,  1880,  used  as  its  motive  power 
to  turn  its  press  an  "old  and  blind  but  willing  and  muscular 
darky."  In  Boston  The  Journal,  founded  February  5, 1833,  grew 
so  prosperous  from  the  start  given  it  during  the  Civil  War  by 
the  correspondence  of  Charles  Charleton  Coffin  that  The  Globe 
was  established  in  that  city  on  March  4,  1872,  with  an  evening 
edition  on  March  7, 1878.  At  Chicago  The  Republican  appeared 
on  May  30,  1865;  The  Evening  Post  on  September  4,  1865;  The 
Evening  Mail,  on  October  18,  1870;  The  Inter  ocean  on  March 
25,  1872;  The  Daily  News,  on  December  26,  1875.  In  Philadel- 
phia The  Record  was  launched  on  June  1,  1877,  as  a  one-cent 
newspaper,  the  first  after  the  Civil  War;  it  was  the  outgrowth 
of  The  Public  Record,  a  paper  founded  on  May  10,  1870,  which 
had  no  influence  and  was  a  losing  venture  until  William  M. 
Singerly  bought  its  Associated  Press  franchise  for  his  new  paper, 
that  was  most  successful  from  the  beginning.  The  Evening 
Bulletin,  which  had  been  founded  in  1847  by  Alexander  Cum- 
mings  under  the  title  Cummings's  Evening  Telegraphic  Bulletin, 
was  in  1865  sold  at  auction  for  eighty-nine  thousand  dollars  and 
passed  through  various  hands  until  it  finally,  after  its  circulation 
had  dwindled  to  less  than  five  thousand,  became  the  property 
of  William  L.  McLean.  ^The  Press,  founded  in  August,  1857,  by 
John  W.  Forney  and  one  of  the  most  influential  newspapers 
during  the  Civil  War  Period,  passed  into  the  control  of  Calvin 
Wells  in  1879.  The  Pennsylvania  Inquirer  changed  its  name  to 
The  Philadelphia  Inquirer  and  became  one  of  the  most  influen- 
tial Republican  newspapers  of  the  State.  The  first  number  of 
The  News  appeared  in  Indianapolis  on  December  7,  1869;  a  few 
subsequent  issues  were  called  The  Evening  News,  but  after  a  few 
months  it  became  The  Indianapolis  News,  under  which  title  it 
is  still  published.  In  Washington,  D.  C.J,  The  Evening  Star,  which 
had  been  founded  December  16,  1852,  became  after  the  war 
a  newspaper  whose  growth  has  been  contemporaneous  with 
the  development  of  Washington.  After  the  war,  John  W.  Forney 
devoted  most  of  his  time  to  The  Press  of  Philadelphia  and  al- 
lowed his  Washington  organ,  The  Chronicle,  to  die.  The  latter's 


RECONSTRUCTION  PERIOD  337 

place  was,  to  a  certain  extent,  taken  by  The  Post,  which  Stilson 
Hutchins  established  in  Washington,  December  6,  1877. 

In  San  Francisco  The  Examiner  was  started  as  a  successor  of 
The  Democratic  Press,  whose  office  had  been  mobbed  on  the 
assassination  of  Lincoln  by  a  crowd  provoked  to  violence  by 
its  previous  attacks  on  the  martyred  President.  In  October, 
1880,  The  Examiner  became  a  morning  paper  and  shortly  after 
passed  into  the  control  of  George  Hearst,  who  wanted  to  further 
his  aspirations  to  the  United  States  Senate.  On  taking  a  seat 
in  that  body  on  March  4,  ISST^he  turned  the  paper  over  to  his 
son,  William  Randolph  Hearst,  who  used  it  as  a  starter  for  the 
chain  of  Hearst  newspapers.  In  ISjffl  The  Daily  Alta  California, 
the  successor  of  The  Yerba  Buena  Star,  and  the  first  daily  paper 
in  the  State,  absorbed  The  Times  and  enjoyed  a  period  of  pros- 
perity until  it  was  acquired  by  James  G.  Fair,  who  used  the 
sheet  to  promote  his  personal  interests  and  his  political  aspira- 
tions. In  spite  of  the  wealth  of  its  owner,  The^AUa  California 
gradually  lost  circulation  and  finally  disappeared  completely  in 
1891.  The  Bulletin,  which  had  been  started  in  San  Francisco  on 
October  ^J.8^,  six  years  after  the  famous  gold  /ush^  by  James 
King,  of  William,  who  lost  his  life  in  May,  185#,  for  his  attack 
upon  James  Casey,  accused  of  stuffing  ballot-boxes,  had  been 
a  Democratic  paper  until  1861,  but  at  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil 
War  it  changed  to  a  Republican  and  did  much  to  keep  Califor- 
nia loyal  to  the  Union  cause.  Unlike  many  other  editors  of  the 
post-bellum  period,  its  editor,  Loring  Pickering,  never  forced  his 
personality  upon  his  readers,  but  he  gave  his  paper  a  state-wide 
reputation  for  incorruptible  honesty.  For  a  number  of  years  he 
was  also  a  part  owner  of  The  San  Francisco  Call,  then  a  morning 
newspaper,  and  took  an  active  interest  in  the  editorial  manage- 
ment. The  San  Francisco  Post  was  started  in  1871. 

Two  papers,  started  like  theater  programmes  during  this 
period,  later  became  influential  newspapers.  The  first  of  these 
was  The  Bee,  a  small  two-page  evening  paper  founded  in 
Omaha  on  June  19,  1871,  by  Edward  Rose  water.  The  second 
was  The  Dramatic  Chronicle  established  in  San  Francisco  on 
June  16, 1865,  by  Charles  de  Young.  Its  initial  numbers  had  the 
appearance  of  play-bills  and  were  distributed  free  in  theaters  and 


338       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

other  places.  After  each  performance  at  San  Francisco  theaters 
copies  of  The  Dramatic  Chronicle  were  gathered  from  the  floors 
and  elsewhere,  smoothed  out  by  an  old-fashioned  kitchen  iron, 
and  then  sent  to  points  outside  the  city.  In  this  way  the  paper 
became  a  very  valuable  advertising  medium.  Enterprising  from 
the  start,  The  Chronicle  reached  an  important  prestige  during 
the  Modoc  War  when  it  distanced  all  other  San  Francisco  dailies 
in  publishing  the  news.  The  distinctly  dramatic  character  of  the 
paper  was  abandoned  on  September  1,  ^1878/when  it  became 

\a  regular  daily  newspaper.  Shortly  after  the  paper  was  started, 
M.  H.  de  Young  joined  his  brother  in  the  editorship  and  man- 
agement of  The  Dramatic  Chronicle. 

OTHER  NEWSPAPER  CHANGES 

In  Cleveland  William  W.  Armstrong,  a  prominent  newspaper- 
man, assumed  charge  of  The  Plaindealer  which  J.  W.  and  A.  N. 
Gray,  two  school-teachers,  had  founded  in  1841  upon  the  re- 
mains of  The  Cleveland  Advertiser,  a  Democratic  daily  started  in 
1832.  In  Columbus  The  Ohio  State  Journal,  with  which  Wil- 
liam Dean  Howells  had  been  actively  connected  as  a  sub-editor, 
became  one  of  the  most  important  Republican  organs  of  the 
State;  the  paper  had  been  started  in  1811  in  the  little  village 
of  Worthington  as  The  Western  Intelligencer  by  James  Kil- 
bourne,  but  in  1814,  in  moving  to  Columbus,  it  added  Gazette 
to  its  name  and  in  1825  it  took  into  partnership  State  Printer 
Nashee,  of  Chillicothe,  —  famous  in  Ohio  journalism,  —  who 
insisted  that  Ohio  State  Journal  be  put  first  in  the  title.  In  jDe- 
troit,  The  Evening  News,  started  in  August,  1873,  by  James  1  •;. 
Scripps  and  sold  on  the  streets  at  two  cents  a  copy,  became  a 
rival  of  The  Free  Press  and  The  Detroit  Tribune.  In  Milwaukee 
The  Sentinel,  established  on  June  27, 1837,  and  The  Evening  Wis- 
consin, established  on  June  8,  1847,  became  leaders  of  Wisconsin 
journalism.  In  St.  Louis  The  Republic,  which  changed  its  name 
from  The  Republican  because  its  editor,  Charles  H.  Jones,  found 
it  impossible  to  convince  his  friends  that  he  was  running  a 
Democratic  and  not  a  Republican  newspaper,  became,  under  the 
editorship  of  William  Hyde,  a  paper  with  no  straddling  or  wab- 
bling editorial  policies.  In  Pittsburgh  The  Gazette  acquired  in 


RECONSTRUCTION  PERIOD  339 

1877  the  controlling  interest  in  The  Commercial,  a  paper  estab- 
lished in  1864  by  C.  D.  Bingham:  this  consolidation,  called 
The  Commercial  Gazette,  was  edited  by  Russell  Errett. 

PULITZER  IN   ST.   LOUIS 

One  newspaper  change  can  be  recorded  in  a  sentence.  Toward 
the  close  of  the  period,  Joseph  Pulitzer  purchased  The  Post- 
Dispatch  of  St.  Louis.  "  The  penniless  son  of  a  Jewish  father  and 
a  Catholic  mother,"  Pulitzer  left  Hungary  in  1864  to  come  to 
America.  After  various  precarious  attempts  to  earn  his  living, 
he  became  at  twenty-one  a  reporter  on  The  St.  Louis  Westliche- 
Post,  then  under  the  management  of  Carl  Schurz.  By  strange 
coincidence  he  was  the  secretary  of  the  Cincinnati  Liberal  Re- 
publican Convention  which  nominated  Horace  Greeley,  of  The 
New  York  Tribune,  for  President.  After  securing  control  of  The 
Post-Dispatch)  Pulitzer  made  the  paper  a  power  for  good  by  at- 
tacking the  corrupt  interests  which  had  again  become  intrenched 
following  their  exposure  by  The  Democrat  during  Grant's  Ad- 
ministration. It  was  in  St.  Louis  that  Pulitzer  first  tried  out 
many  of  his  theories  about  the  editing  and  making  of  a  news- 
paper which  he  later  developed  and  perfected  after  he  pur- 
chased The  New  York  World  from  Jay  Gould  in  May,  1883. 

FIRST  COOPERATIVE  PAPERS 

During  the  War  Colonel  A.  H.  Bellow  was  a  soldier  in  the  Con- 
federate Army,  but  after  the  surrender  at  Appomattox  he  went 
on  horseback  to  Galveston,  where  he  arrived  in  June,  1865.  Be- 
coming associated  with  The  News  he  made  it  one  of  the  most  suc- 
cessful papers  in  the  State.  In  1881,  in  reorganizing  a  company 
to  publish  The  News,  he  drew  its  charter  in  such  a  way  that  it 
might  publish  papers  not  only  in  Galveston,  but  also  in  other 
cities  in  Texas  and  became  the  first  successful  publisher  of  co- 
operative newspapers.  With  the  privilege  granted  by  the  new 
charter,  he  established  in  Dallas  a  second  daily  also  called  The 
News.  He  made  no  mistake  in  trying  to  make  the  latter  paper 
a  minor  publication.  For  all  practical  purposes  The  News  in 
Dallas  was  quite  independent  of  its  older  relative  in  Galveston 
and  had  its  own  newspaper  plant,  its  own  staff  of  editors,  and  its 


340       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

own  corps  of  reporters.    To  Texas,  therefore,  belongs  the  honor 
of  being  the  first  in  cooperative  journalism  in  America. 

PASSING   OF   PRENTICE 

In  Louisville,  Kentucky,  there  came  a  most  remarkable  jour- 
nalism change  brought  about  by  the  new  conditions  which  had 
arisen  in  that  city,  where  for  more  than  thirty  years  George 
Denison  Prentice  had  been  not  only  the  foremost  journalist  of 
Kentucky  and  the  entire  South,  but  also  one  of  the  greatest  edi- 
tors of  the  middle  nineteenth  century.  His  journalistic  career 
began  in  1828  on  The  New  England  Review,  as  an  associate  of 
John  Greenleaf  Whittier,  who,  though  a  Quaker,  was  a  most  in- 
tense fighter  for  the  freedom  of  the  negro.  Induced  by  Con- 
necticut Whigs  at  Hartford  to  prepare  a  campaign  life  of  Henry 
Clay,  Prentice  went  to  Kentucky  to  gather  data.  At  that  time 
the  Democrats  were  determined  to  defeat  Clay  in  his  own  State 
and  Prentice  was  persuaded  to  start  a  paper  to  attack  the  Jack- 
son Democracy.  Accordingly  The  Louisville  Journal  appeared 
on  November  24,  1&3Q.  From  the  start  the  paper  had  attracted 
national  attention  by  its  -clever  satirical  epigrammatic  para- 
graphs, which  William  Cullen  Bryant  of  The  New  York  Evening 
Post  called  "the  stinging,  hissing  bolts  of  scorn. "  Many  of  these 
satiric  arrows  from  his  editorial  quiver  were  aimed  at  Andrew 
Jackson.  When  it  was  announced  that  General  Jackson  had  be- 
come a  member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  subscribers  of 
The  Journal  wondered  what  Prentice,  who  had  been  educated 
in  a  Presbyterian  school,  would  say:  following  his  bare  announce- 
ment of  Jackson's  decision  were  two  lines  to  which  no  Presby- 
terian could  object,  for  they  were  taken  from  a  hymn  by  Dr. 
Watts:  — 

While  the  lamp  holds  out  to  burn 
The  vilest  sinner  may  return. 

The  mention  of  sinners  recalls  another  flip  from  Prentice's 
pen,  "A  well-known  writer  says  that  a  fine  coat  covers  a  multi- 
tude of  sins,  but  it  is  still  truer  that  such  coats  cover  a  multitude 
of  sinners."  Many  of  these  squibs  were  later  collected  in  a  book 
entitled  "  Prenticeana,  or  Wit  and  Humour  in  Paragraphs." 

Prentice  was  ever  prepared  to  fight,  not  only  with  his  pen,  but 


RECONSTRUCTION   PERIOD  341 

also  with  his  pistol.  So  frequent  were  the  attacks  upon  him 
that  he  was  commonly  caricatured  by  cartoonists  with  a  pistol 
in  one  hand  and  a  pen  in  the  other.  Possibly  the  nearest  that  he 
ever  came  to  losing  his  life  was  when  he  was  fired  upon  by  George 
J.  Trotter,  editor  of  The  Kentucky  Gazette.  At  the  beginning  of 
the  war,  he  espoused  the  cause  of  the  Union  and  put  into  his 
column  all  the  ardent  enthusiasm  of  his  nature  in  spite  of 
the  threats  of  his  enemies  and  the  enlistment  of  his  two  sons, 
whom  he  loved  devotedly,  in  the  Southern  Army.  An  old-time 
Whig,  he  could  not  become  either  an  out-and-out  Republican 
or  an  out-and-out  Democrat.  This  indecision  during  the  Re- 
construction Period  proved  a  handicap  to  The  Journal,  which 
was  not  heeding  the  new  voice  of  the  South.  Henry  Watterson, 
however,  in  reviving  an  old  suspended  newspaper  in  Nashville, 
was  attracting  a  great  deal  of  attention  with  his  editorials.  It 
was  to  him  that  Prentice,  in  retiring,  turned  to  find  a  successor 
for  the  editorial  chair  of  The  Journal.  Later,  Walter  N.  Halde- 
man,  who  had  revived  The  Courier,  made  even  a  more  attractive 
offer  to  Watterson.  The  offer  was  refused,  and  for  a  while  the 
papers  continued  a  separate  publication,  though  always  on 
friendly  terms.  On  Sunday,  November  8,  1868+  however,  sub- 
scribers were  surprised  to  find  on  their  doorsteps  a  united  sheet, 
The  Courier-Journal.  At  the  start,  Watterson  had  found  him- 
self al  a  disadvantage  following  the  steps  of  Prentice.  Gradually 
he  impressed  upon  his  subscribers  his  own  remarkable  abilities 
as  an  editor.  During  the  Hayes-Tilden  fight,  "Marse  Henry ," 
a  sobriquet  bestowed  upon  him  by  the  press,  announced  that  he 
was  prepared  to  lead  one  hundred  thousand  Democrats  to  Wash- 
ington for  no  other  purpose  than  to  put  Samuel  J.  Tilden  in  the 
White  House.  On  the  other  hand,  Watterson  did  much  to  dis- 
seminate broadcast  a  better  feeling  between  the  North  and 
South. 

EVENING   PAPERS  OF  NEW  YORK 

Augustus  Maverick,  writing  in  1870  about  the  New  York  press 
in  general  and  The  New  York  Times  in  particular,  expressed  sur- 
prise at  the  alarming  growth  of  New  York  evening  papers  during 
recent  years  and  asserted  that  it  was  a  mystery  which  no  writer 


342       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

on  the  subject  of  journalism  could  explain.  Speaking  specifically 
of  some  of  these  papers,  he  said :  — 

The  youngest  of  these  sheets,  The  Republic,  died  suddenly  at  the  end 
of  1869;  yet  nine  survive.  The  prices  at  which  these  nine  are  sold  range 
from  one  cent  to  five  cents  each.  The  oldest  is  The  Commercial  Ad- 
vertiser, which  has  been  in  existence  since  1794.  The  next  in  age  is 
The  Evening  Post,  established  in  1801.  The  third  in  order  is  The  Express, 
first  issued  as  a  morning  paper,  but  changed  into  an  evening  sheet 
several  years  ago.  Then  were  born  The  Evening  Mail,  The  News,  The 
Commonwealth,  The  Telegram,  The  Democrat,  and  The  Press  and  Globe. 
Some  of  these  have  gained  a  daily  circulation  of  ten  thousand  copies; 
others,  seven  to  eight  thousand;  others,  a  few  hundreds  only.  No  one 
of  them  can  ever  reach  the  circulation  which  is  regarded  as  essential  to 
the  existence  of  a  morning  paper;  for  the  latter  is  never  accounted 
a  success  until  it  is  delivered  daily  to  at  least  twenty  thousand  readers; 
but  the  advertising  patronage  of  the  business  houses  in  the  city  is 
fairly  apportioned  among  all,  in  great  part  through  the  skilful  manipu- 
lation of  Advertising  Agencies;  and  thus  a  respectable  support  is  se- 
cured. 

;The  evening  paper  had  not  yet  come  into  its  own  as  a  daily 
Bulletin  board  of  the  news,  to  which  might  be  added  illustrated 
ind  special  features  designed  primarily  to  appeal  to  the  women. 

CHICAGO   FIRE   AND   LOCAL   PRESS 

The  great  fire  which  occurred  in  Chicago  in  October,  1870, 
showed  the  ingenuity  of  the  newspaper  publishers  of  that  city. 
Within  forty-eight  hours  after  the  fire  had  been  stopped,  The 
Journal,  The  Republican,  The  Mail,  The  Times,  The  Tribune,  and 
The  Post  were  again  reappearing.  To  be  sure,  they  were  printed 
on  smaller  sheets,  but  they  gave  the  news  of  the  city.  Within 
two  months,  the  Chicago  papers  were  back  again  to  their  original 
size.  To  their  help  came  the  other  newspapers  of  the  country 
with  offers  of  type,  presses,  etc.  For  example,  The  Tribune  of 
New  York  offered  to  ship  its  entire  auxiliary  plant  to  its  name- 
sake in  Chicago.  This  offer  was  brought  about  by  John  Hay, 
who  was  reporting  the  conflagration  for  The  New  York  Tribune 
—  no  easy  task,  for  pitted  against  him  were  three  representatives 
of  The  New  York  Herald.  The  offer,  however,  was  seed  sown  on 
good  ground,  for  later,  when  Hay  was  acting  as  editor  of  The 
New  York  Tribune  in  the  absence  of  Whitelaw  Reid,  a  para- 


RECONSTRUCTION   PERIOD  343 

grapher  of  the  editorial  staff  of  The  Chicago  Tribune  began  a 
somewhat  savage,  though  disguised  as  humorous,  attack  on 
New  York  papers,  whereupon  Hay  reminded  Medill,  editor  of 
The  Chicago  Tribune,  of  the  services  offered  at  the  time  of  the 
fire  and  asked  that  the  picric  squibs  be  stopped.  It  was  done. 

ATTACK  ON  ASSOCIATED  PRESS 

How  James  W.  Simonton,  when  Washington  correspondent 
of  The  New  York  'Tirnes,  had  exposed  theJMand  graft^ has  been 
recorded  in  another  chapter.  During  (Grant's  Administration, 
Simonton  was  the  general  manager  of  the  Associated  Press  and 
undoubtedly  had  much  to  do  with  the  publicity  given  to  the 
chicanery  of  many  of  the  appointees  of  the  Administration.  Their 
exposure  led  to  an  attempt  to  depose  Simonton  as  the  "sole  tele- 
graphic historian  of  the  country."  They  drew  up  an  indictment 
of  the  Associated  Press  in  which  they  tried  to  cast  reflections 
upon  its  manager.  Their  attack  upon  the  organization,  forming 
a  basis  of  others  which  followed  later,  may  be  quoted  as  the  atti- 
tude of  its  opponents  not  only  in  this  period,  but  in  the  others 
which  followed:  — 

The  Associated  Press  is  engaged  ostensibly  in  the  collection,  sale, 
and  distribution  of  news  dispatches  for  such  of  the  newspaper  press 
of  the  country  as  find  favor  in  its  sight.  It  has  numerous  agents  in  the 
towns  and  cities  of  the  United  States,  employed  to  send  dispatches  to  its 
headquarters  at  New  York.  It  makes  special  and  exclusive  contracts 
with  combinations  of  favorite  newspapers,  and  within  their  charmed 
circles  no  other  papers  are  admitted.  Being  favored  by  the  Western 
Union  Telegraph  Company  with  terms  and  conditions  as  to  cost  and 
precedence  of  business  much  more  favorable  than  any  rival  concern  can 
secure,  the  Associated  Press  has  become  a  power  in  the  land,  amounting 
to  a  censorship  of  the  press;  for  as  it  virtually  monopolizes  the  only  tele- 
graphic system  which  extends  generally  throughout  the  United  States, 
of  course  no  papers  can  compete  with  the  Associated  Press  "ring" 
newspapers  in  the  completeness  of  news  by  telegraph.  The  manager 
of  this  overshadowing  power  has  the  appointment  and  removal  of  all  its 
agents,  and  his  good  will  being  the  tenure  of  their  employment,  it  is 
in  his  power  to  give  color  and  tone  to  all  press  dispatches. 

Were  the  manager  a  man  devoted  to  giving  legitimate  information 
concerning  passing  events,  and  above  all  temptation  to  spread  false 
information,  either  for  gain  or  to  gratify  personal  feeling,  still  it  would 
seem  hard  that  he  should  have  the  power  to  dictate  which  of  the  papers 


344       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

of  the  land  should  be  forced  upon  people  who  must  have  the  news 
even  though  they  have  to  patronize  papers  not  in  accord  with  their 
sentiments.  But  if  the  manager  should  be  an  unscrupulous  man,  devoid 
of  all  regard  for  truth  and  justice,  filled  with  prejudice  and  hatred  grow- 
ing out  of  punishment  inflicted  upon  him,  and  bent  upon  building  up  or 
tearing  down  the  reputation  of  individuals  by  reckless  misstatements 
scattered  broadcast  throughout  the  land,  he  would  be  able  to  play  the 
tyrant  and  assassin,  and  would  possess  a  power  which  ought  to  be  un- 
known among  a  free  people. 

This  re'sume'  was  followed  by  an  attempt  to  show  that  Simon- 
ton,  "at  whose  bidding  the  so-called  news  dispatches  of  the  day 
are  concocted,  is  a  man  of  the  class  last  described."  Simonton, 
however,  had  simply  published  the  facts  as  he  found  them  in 
Washington.  While  Grant  may  be  justly  blamed  for  the  selec- 
tion of  the  men  he  put  in  office,  he  was  not,  according  to  the 
records,  directly  implicated  in  the  questionable  deals  put  through 
at  Washington. 

The  Associated  Press  during  the  Period  of  Reconstruction  was 
not  an  incorporated  body,  being  simply  a  combination  of  smaller 
associations  loosely  held  together  through  a  written  agreement 
for  the  exchange  of  news.  The  New  York  City  Association,  as 
during  the  Civil  War  Period,  was  the  clearing-house  for  the 
smaller  branches.  These  branch  associations  were  determined 
by  a  community  of  interest  due,  for  the  most  part,  to  geographi- 
cal situation.  The  parent  association  at  New  York  attended  to 
the  exchange  with  European  agencies  and  stationed  agents  in 
the  sparsely  settled  sections  of  the  great  plains  West  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi. The  telegraph  company  during  the  period  permitted 
its  operators  to  act  as  agents  and  to  forward  news  by  wire:  in 
fact,  they  were  expected  to  add  to  the  revenue  of  the  company 
by  such  service.  Distributing  stations  were  also  established  at 
Chicago,  Cincinnati,  Detroit,  Memphis,  Milwaukee,  and  St. 
Louis;  from  these  cities  abbreviated  accounts  —  technically 
known  as  "pony  reports"  -were  distributed  along  circuits  to 
the  dailies  in  the  smaller  cities.  The  exclusive  features  of  the 
Associated  Press  led  to  the  organization  of  a  rival  company,  the 
American  Press  Association,  which  sold  its  news  to  any  news- 
paper on  payment  of  stated  weekly  charges.  A  distinct  reorgani- 
zation of  the  Associated  Press  occurred  in  the  next  era. 


RECONSTRUCTION   PERIOD  345 

GRANT'S  POSTMASTERS 

There  was  much  complaint  on  the  part  of  the  Democratic 
press  that  Grant's  postmasters  showed  partiality  in  distributing 
newspapers  to  the  advantage  of  the  Republican  editors.  The 
charge  brought  by  The  Syracuse  Courier  was  typical  of  what  was 
said  to  be  a  general  condition  in  many  sections.  The  postmaster 
at  Baldwinsville,  according  to  The  Courier,  "kept  back  Demo- 
cratic papers  and  to  some  of  the  subscribers  he  delivered  the 
copies  a  week  after  arrival  and  to  others  he  did  not  deliver  the 
papers  at  all  but  when  a  package  of  loyal  newspapers  reached 
him,  the  alacrity  with  which  he  flew  around  and  put  them  in 
boxes  was  beautiful  to  behold."  Such  a  condition  has  obtained, 
however,  during  the  administrations  of  presidents  other  than 
Grant  —  especially  in  the  rural  sections. 

NO  THIRD  TERM  FOR  GRANT 

In  1874  the  editorial  pages  of  American  newspapers  bristled 
with  items  about  the  possibility  of  a  third  term  for  Grant.  The 
commotion,  which  is  said  to  have  been  started  by  The  New  York 
Herald,  announced  that  Grant  was  willing  to  set  aside  the  prece- 
dent established  by  Washington  and  to  accept  a  third  term.  If 
The  New  York  Herald  really  started  the  matter,  it  threw  a  fire- 
brand among  the  Democratic  sheets,  which  with  surprising 
alacrity  proceeded  to  denounce  Grantism  and  "  Third  Termism." 
The  Republican  press  was  not  so  prompt  to  consider  the  ques- 
tion, but  was  later  forced  to  take  sides.  Urged  by  friendly  news- 
papers, Grant  finally  made  known  his  position  in  which  he  said, 
"I  do  not  want  it  any  more  than  I  did  the  first,"  but  he  added 
that  the  Constitution  did  not  expressly  restrict  a  president  to 
two  terms  and  that  conditions  might  be  such  as  to  make  it  an  im- 
perative duty  to  accept.  The  reply  so  divided  the  Republican 
press  that  many  warm  supporters  of  Grant  in  previous  cam- 
paigns came  out  boldly  and  asserted  that  any  departure  from  the 
custom  set  by  Washington  would  be  unwise  and  fraught  with 
great  peril  to  the  American  Republic.  This  revolt,  aided  by  the 
Democratic  journals,  undoubtedly  defeated  the  third  nomination 
for  Grant. 


346       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 


TAX   ON  ADVERTISING  REMOVED 

During  the  Reconstruction  Period  all  acts  which  had  imposed 
a  tax  upon  newspaper  advertisements  during  the  war  were 
repealed.  On  July  1,  1862,  an  act  was  passed  which  provided  that 
after  August  1,  1862,  all  newspapers  and  other  periodicals  should 
pay  a  tax  of  three  per  cent  on  the  gross  receipts  for  all  advertise- 
ments and  for  all  other  items  for  which  pay  was  received.  On 
June  30,  1864,  another  act  provided  that  in  cases  where  the  rate 
on  the  price  of  advertising  was  fixed  by  law  of  the  United  States, 
of  the  State  or  Territory,  it  was  lawful  for  the  newspapers  pub- 
lishing such  advertisements  to  add  the  tax  to  the  price  of  the 
advertisements,  "any  law  to  the  contrary  notwithstanding,"  be- 
cause of  the  burden  that  the  tax  imposed  upon  the  smaller  news- 
papers. The  act  of  1864  provided  for  the  exemption  of  taxes  on 
newspaper  advertisements  to  the  amount  of  six  hundred  dol- 
lars annually:  it  also  provided  that  all  newspapers  whose  average 
circulation  did  not  exceed  two  thousand  copies  should  be  ex- 
empted from  all  taxes  for  advertisements.  Because  of  continued 
opposition  on  the  part  of  newspapers,  these  various  acts  relating 
to  a  tax  on  advertisements  were  repealed  on 


PAPER  MADE   FROM   WOOD   PULP 

While  paper  made  from  the  fiber  of  soft  wood  began  to  be  fed 
to  the  printing-press  as  early  as  1867,  it  did  not  come  into  exten- 
sive use  until  later,  for  at  the  start  it  cost  too  much  money  to 
manufacture  in  proportion  to  the  cost  of  raw  material.  For  the 
years  covered  in  the  period  of  Reconstruction  the  contract  price 
of  news  print  paper  delivered  in  New  York  were  as  follows:  - 

Year  Cents  Year  Cents 

1865  ..................  12.6  1873  ...............  11.2 

1866  ..................  17.2  1874  ...............  8.6 

1867  ..................  15.  1875  ...............  8.5 

1868  ..................  14.6  1876  ...............  8.2 

1869  ..................  12.5  1877  ............  8.2 

1870  ..................  12.3  1878  ............  6.46 

1871  ..................  12.1  1879  ...............  6. 

1872  ..................  12.  1880  ...............  6.9 

Whitelaw  Reid,  of  The  New  York  Tribune,  in  addressing  the 
New  York  Editorial  Association  on  June  17,  1879,  said:  — 


RECONSTRUCTION   PERIOD  347 

I  look  forward  to  the  day  when  printing  paper  will  sell  far  below  its 
present  price;  and  I  rest  this  faith  on  the  simple  supposition  that  a 
manufactured  article,  the  process  of  manufacture  of  which  is  easy  and 
comparatively  cheap,  cannot  long  be  continuing  to  be  sold  at  six  cents 
a  pound,  when  the  bulk  of  the  raw  material  entering  into  it  grows  in  the 
forests  on  every  hillside  and  can  be  bought  at  two  dollars  a  cord.  The 
disproportion  between  the  cost  of  the  raw  material  and  the  cost  of  the 
manufactured  article  is  too  great  to  be  permanently  maintained.  It  is 
true  enough  that  paper-makers  have  only  the  narrowest  margin  of 
profit  now;  but  better  processes  for  making  wood  pulp  and  unproved 
machinery  for  converting  into  paper  must  surely  come. 

It  did  come.  During  the  decade  between  1880  and  1890  the 
price  of  wood-pulp  paper  dropped  from  six  cents  to  four  cents. 
During  the  next  decade  it  touched  the  remarkable  low  price  of 
one  and  six  tenths  cents  per  pound  for  the  larger  cities,  where 
it  was  purchased  in  rolls.  From  that  time  it  gradually  advanced 
fraction  by  fraction  until  the  problem  of  white  paper  became 
most  acute,  during  the  great  European  War. 

POSTAL  REGULATIONS  OF  PERIOD 

After  years  of  unsuccessful  agitation,  the  Postal  Department! 
finally  secured  from  Congress  an  act,  approved  June  23,  1874JI 
by  which  postage  on  newspapers  was  paid  by  weight  and  withfl 
out  reference  to  distance  carried.  The  rate  provided  by  this  act' 
was  two  cents  per  pound  for  papers  issued  weekly  or  of tener  and 
three  cents  per  pound  for  those  published  less  frequently  than 
once  a  week.  Newspapers  for  subscribers  living  outside  of  the 
county  of  publication  were  made  up  in  bulk,  carted  to  the  post- 
office,  where  they  were  weighed.  The  postage  for  the  proper 
amount  was  given  to  the  postmaster  in  stamps  instead  of  being 
adjusted  to  the  papers  or  packages  sent  through  the  mail.  The 
newspaper  stamps,  now  a  rarity,  ranged  in  denomination  from 
two  cents  to  sixty  dollars.  The  new  system  of  collecting  postage 
at  the  office  of  publication,  rather  than  at  the  offices  of  destina- 
tions, returned  the  Postal  Department  additional  revenue,  for 
postmasters  had  been  most  lax  in  collecting  postage  due.  The  act 
of  June  23, 1874,  provided  this  exception :  "That  newspapers,  one 
copy  to  each  actual  subscriber  residing  within  the  county  where 
the  same  are  printed,  in  whole  or  in  part,  and  published,  shall  go 


348       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

free  through  the  mails;  but  the  same  shall  not  be  delivered  at 
letter-carrier  offices  or  distributed  by  carriers  unless  postage 
is  paid  thereon  as  by  law  provided."  An  act  of  March  3,  1879, 
fixed  fche  uniform  rate  of  two  cents  a  pound  for  postage  on  second- 
class  matter  to  which  newspapers  belonged.  All  publications  now 
paid  the  same  rate.  The  two-cent  rate  prevailed  until  March  3, 
1885,  when  it  was  reduced  to  one  cent  a  pound. 

STATISTICAL  RESUME    OF   PAPERS 

Statistics  as  to  the  number  of  newspapers  in  the  United 
States  until  after  the  Census  of  1880  were  most  unreliable,  es- 
pecially as  to  the  number  of  papers  in  the  newly  settled  States 
and  Territories.  The  reports  of  the  census  for  1850, 1860, 1870, 
and  1880  being,  however,  the  most  authoritative  statements  as 
to  the  increase  in  number  of  newspapers,  should  be  quoted  in 
a  comparative  table.  According  to  this  table,  there  were  in  the 
United  States  254  dailies  in  1850,  387  in  1860,  574  in  1870,  971 
in  1880;  115  tri-weeklies  in  1850,  86  in  1860,  107  in  1870,  73  in 
1880;  31  semi-weeklies  in  1850,  79  in  1860,  115  in  1870,  133  in 
1880;  1902  weeklies  in  1850,  3173  in  1860,  4295  in  1870,8633 
in  1880.  Of  all  these  classes,  there  were  in  1850,  2526;  in  1860, 
4051;  in  1870,  5871;  in  1880,  11,314.  The  accompaning  table, 
on  pages  349,  350,  shows  the  distribution  of  these  classes  for 
the  various  census  years:  — 

LOCATION   OF  DAILY  PAPERS 

S.  N.  B.  North  made  for  the  Government  in  1880  a  special 
investigation  of  the  newspaper  and  periodical  press  in  America. 
In  his  report  he  published  an  interesting  observation  about  the 
location  of  the  daily  papers.^  Nine  hundred  and  seventy-one  daily 
newspapers  of  the  census  year  were  published  in  three  hundred 
and  eighty-nine  towns  or  cities  —  an  average  of  two  and  one-half 
to  each  place.  The  strange  anomaly  was  discovered  of  towns, 
with  less  than  four  thousand  in  population,  having  two  and 
sometimes  three  daily  papers.  The  smallest  town  in  1880  which 
had  a  daily  was  Elko,  Nevada,  with  a  population  of  seven  hun- 
dred and  fifty-two.  The  smallest  town  in  which  two  daily 
papers  were  published  was  Tombstone,  Arizona,  with  a  popula- 


-H       O0fit»i-i  OOCO       >-i<N       1-1  CO 


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(N    I     I   Tj«    |   rH    |    CO    I   <-l  OS  <H  •*  -H    |   i-l    I   -^00    I   CNCO    I  I   CO    I     I     I   (N    |     I 

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o>  .coco^co  ,^co  ,  jo  ,30  ,g«« 

t"»    I   CO  00    I   CO    I   i—*        i-H  t^»    I   COCO    I 

~1  —       — .  1-11-<          « 

•Hi      |COI>H|^*C»'Hr-l|CM>OIOI>HCOI       I    »t<  CO  I    »H     I       |^H|      |i-H 

(O    I     I  «N    I     I     I     I  iHNWJ    I  CO    I     I  CN    I  CO    I  TfCNCO'H  |  C<  CO    I     I     I     I     I 

*  i    i^i^I1    i^l^i  nn  i  <?> « •*  oo  oo  eo  t-j  oo  rj<  «o  jo  |    |    |    |  »o 
oo  ,o>eo  ,  o  ,  t^aoot^  ,  ^g  ,  jo 

I     I     I     I     I     I     I  CO    I     I     I     I     I     I     I     I 

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COI     l^|t»|     I    10    I    10    I    GOO    I     I      I   Q>  -H  •*  CO  IN  CO  I     I   IO    I     I      I      |   CO    I 

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5  r-i  00  1C  t-  CO  «  »C  CO       t^CNCSOSOO 


i  •*  i  eo  i  i-»  i    i  «i  i  ^e 


»-l    I   rH«O«    I   00    I     I  CO    I 


lOCOQO    I  CO    I  -*(N>fl    I     I  t^-H 


t^  O  <N  t*  O5  »C  I-H  OS  <N  00  CO  •*        O 

»ooi-iC5'-HCO«oi^     CMO       leoi 


toi-100    I  <-H    I   t^CC    I     I  1C    I     I  00 


O  TH  M  i-i  IN 
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COiCO    I   CS    I  IQCMIQ    I     I  C4    I     |-4< 


RECONSTRUCTION  PERIOD  351 

tion  of  nine  hundred  and  seventy-three.  In  California  the  town 
of  Eureka,  with  a  population  of  twenty-six  hundred  and  thirty- 
nine,  had  three  daily  papers,  and  the  town  of  Red  Bluff,  popula- 
tion of  twenty-one  hundred  and  six,  two  daily  papers.  Galena, 
Kansas,  had  one  daily  for  a  population  of  fourteen  hundred  and 
sixty-three;  Greenville,  Michigan,  two  dailies  for  a  population 
of  thirty-one  hundred  and  forty-four;  Olean,  New  York,  one 
daily  for  a  population  of  three  thousand  and  thirty-six;  Winne- 
mucca,  Nevada,  one  daily  for  a  population  of  seven  hundred  and 
sixty-three;  and  Milton,  Pennsylvania,  one  daily  for  a  popula- 
tion of  twenty-one  hundred  and  two. 

END   OF   PERIOD 

The  period  practically  began  with  an  impeachment  of  a  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  and  closed  with  a  contest  of  one  whose 
very  election  to  the  White  House  was  most  seriously  questioned 
and  had  to  be  determined  by  an  unconstitutional  Electoral  Com- 
mission distinctly  partisan  in  bias.  Under  such  conditions  it  was 
but  natural  that  a  somewhat  inflammable  press  should  mirror 
the  times  often  at  white-heat  with  political  passion.  From  ma- 
terial of  unrefined  ore  the  editors  fashioned  their  papers  under  a 
forced  draft  that  left  no  time  for  the  cooling  process.  Yet  the 
centrifugal  force  threw  out  much  of  the  slag  and  left  the  news- 
paper nearer  the  pattern  given  by  Samuel  Bowles,  of  The  Spring- 
field Republican. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

PERIOD  OF  FINANCIAL  READJUSTMENT 
1880  —  1900 

MANTON  MARBLE,  one  of  the  ablest  of  the  early  editors  of  The 
New  York  World,  claimed  in  a  published  lecture  on  journalism 
two  things  for  the  maker  of  newspapers :  — 

A.  That  he  is  a  merchant  of  news.  He  buys  it  everywhere  —  he  sells 
it  in  any  market  not  stocked  with  his  commodity.  Enterprise  and  in- 
dustry get  him,  and  other  merchants,  success  and  honor,  and  of  like 
kind.   Probity  has  the  same  reward  in  public  confidence.   Shrewd  and 
far-sighted  combinations  bring  to  the  merchant  of  news  —  or  of  flour,  or 
of  pork  —  profit  and  credit. 

B.  That  he  has  it  in  trust  and  stewardship  to  be  the  organ  and  mould 
of  public  opinion,  to  express  and  guide  it,  and  to  seek,  through  all  con- 
flicting private  interests,  solely  the  public  general  good.    Herein  his 
work  is  allied  to  the  statesman's,  the  politician's,  and  takes  rank  as  it 
takes  tribute  of  letters,  science  and  the  law. 

COMMERCIAL  JOURNALISM 

The  financial  readjustment  under  which  the  larger  daily  news- 
paper went  during  the  last  two  decades  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury brought  many  changes  in  journalism.  There  was  a  time 
when  the  subscriber  paid  his  money  primarily  to  see  what 
Horace  Greeley  had  to  say  in  The  New  York  Tribune  or  to  read 
what  Joseph  Medill  wrote  for  The  Chicago  Tribune:  even  after 
Greeley's  death  the  upstate  farmer  renewed  his  subscription  for 
The  New  York  Tribune  because  he  thought  Horace  still  prepared 
its  contents.  But  the  impersonal  and  commercial  journalism 
changed  completely  conditions  and  customs.  Formerly,  the 
editor  was  practically  supreme  in  control:  he  was  the  employer 
of  the  publisher,  of  the  advertising  manager,  of  the  circulation 
agent,  etc.  After  he  ceased  to  have  the  controlling  interest,  it 
passed  into  other  hands  represented  at  official  councils  by  the 
business  manager:  only  occasionally,  the  exception  which  proved 


PERIOD  OF  FINANCIAL   READJUSTMENT    353 

the  rule,  did  the  editor  have  sufficient  wealth  or  its  equivalent  in 
credit  at  the  bank  to  buy  or  to  start  a  daily  in  any  one  of  the 
larger  cities.  The  dividing  line  between  the  A  and  the  B  of 
Manton  Marble's  claims  grew  very  distinct :  the  former  became 
the  downstairs  office  devoted  to  the  business;  the  latter,  the  up- 
stairs office  devoted  to  the  profession.  Here  and  there,  more  fre- 
quently in  the  West  than  in  the  East,  arose  a  man  who  was  both 
a  good  business  executive  and  an  able  editor. 

The  metropolitan  daily  represented  too  heavy  a  financial  in- 
vestment to  be  organized  on  any  save  a  sound  business  basis. 
The  telegraph  and  the  cable  made  news  a  most  perishable  com- 
modity because  of  the  rapidity  with  which  it  could  be  placed  be- 
fore the  public.  Shop- worn  goods  the  merchant  can  sell  at  a 
special  sale  to  bring  at  least  the  cost  of  production,  but  stale  news 
the  publisher  cannot  market  at  any  price.  The  franchise  in  a 
press  association  became  harder  to  get  and  at  the  same  time 
carried  with  it  a  constantly  increasing  charge  for  better  service. 
Presses  jumped  from  hundreds  to  tens  of  thousands  in  cost  of 
manufacture.  Extra  ones  were  purchased  for  emergency  cases 
so  that  if  one  press  broke  down  the  plates  of  the  paper  could  be 
shifted  to  another  without  danger  of  missing  the  mails.  Typo- 
graphical unions  kept  pushing  the  wages  of  printers  and  press- 
men higher  and  higher  up  the  scale.  Competition  reduced  the 
selling  price,  but  increased  the  cost  of  distribution.  The  return 
privilege  by  which  newsdealers  did  not  pay  for  unsold  papers 
kept  the  "profit  and  loss"  entry  on  the  ledger  first  in  red  and 
then  in  black  ink  according  to  sales.  Additions  to  the  editorial 
staff  increased  the  number  of  employees  while  "bids"  from  rivals 
raised  the  salaries  of  other  members.  More  and  more  the  revenue 
came  from  advertising  and  less  and  less  from  circulation.  Such 
conditions  demanded  a  business  pilot  at  the  wheel  to  steer  the 
newspaper  craft  sailing  over  seas  uncharted  by  editors  of  previ- 
ous periods. 

VIEWS   OF   CHARLES   DUDLEY  WARNER 

Charles  Dudley  Warner,  long  associated  with  The  Couranl,  of 
Hartford,  Connecticut,  thus  explained  clearly  and  succinctly 
journalism  conditions  obtaining  at  the  beginning  of  the  Period 


354       HISTORY,  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

of  Financial  Readjustment  in  a  lecture  on  "The  American  News- 
paper" before  the  Social  Science  Association  on  September  6, 
1881:  — 

The  recognition  of  the  fact  that  the  newspaper  is  a  private  and  purely 
business  enterprise  will  help  to  define  the  mutual  relations  of  the  editor 
and  the  public.  His  claim  upon  the  public  is  exactly  that  of  any  man- 
ufacturer or  dealer.  It  is  that  of  the  man  who  makes  cloth,  or  the  grocer 
who  opens  a  shop:  neither  has  a  right  to  complain  if  the  public  does  not 
buy  of  him.  If  the  buyer  does  not  like  a  cloth  half  shoddy,  or  coffee  half 
chicory,  he  will  go  elsewhere.  If  the  subscriber  does  not  like  one  news- 
paper, he  takes  another,  or  none.  The  appeal  for  newspaper  support  on 
the  ground  that  such  a  journal  ought  to  be  sustained  by  an  enlightened 
community,  or  on  any  ground  than  that  it  is  a  good  article  that  people 
want,  —  or  would  want  if  they  knew  its  value,  —  is  purely  childish  in 
this  age  of  the  world.  If  any  person  wants  to  start  a  periodical  devoted 
to  decorated  teapots,  with  the  noble  view  of  inducing  the  people  to  live 
up  to  his  idea  of  a  teapot,  very  good;  but  he  has  no  right  to  complain  if 
he  fails. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  public  has  no  rights  in  the  newspaper  except 
what  it  pays  for;  even  the  "old  subscriber"  has  none,  except  to  drop  the 
paper  if  it  ceases  to  please  him.  The  notion  that  the  subscriber  has  a 
right  to  interfere  in  the  conduct  of  the  paper,  or  the  reader  to  direct  its 
opinions,  is  based  on  a  misconception  of  what  the  newspaper  is.  The 
claim  of  the  public  to  have  its  communications  printed  in  the  paper  is 
equally  baseless.  Whether  they  shall  be  printed  or  not  rests  in  the  dis- 
cretion of  the  editor,  having  reference  to  his  own  private  interest,  and  to 
liis  apprehension  of  the  public  good.  Nor  is  he  bound  to  give  any  rea- 
son for  his  refusal.  It  is  purely  in  his  discretion  whether  he  will  admit  a 
reply  to  any  thing  that  has  appeared  in  his  columns.  No  one  has  a  right 
to  demand  it.  Courtesy  and  policy  may  grant  it;  but  the  right  to  it  does 
not  exist.  If  any  one  is  injured,  he  may  seek  his  remedy  at  law;  and  I 
should  like  to  see  the  law  of  libel  such  and  so  administered  that  any  per- 
son injured  by  a  libel  in  the  newspaper,  as  well  as  by  slander  out  of  it, 
could  be  sure  of  prompt  redress.  While  the  subscriber  acquires  no  right 
to  dictate  to  the  newspaper,  we  can  imagine  an  extreme  case  when  he 
should  have  his  money  back  which  had  been  paid  in  advance,  if  the 
newspaper  totally  changed  its  character.  If  he  had  contracted  with  a 
dealer  to  supply  him  with  hard  coal  during  the  winter,  he  might  have  a 
remedy  if  the  dealer  delivered  only  charcoal  in  the  coldest  weather;  and 
so  if  he  paid  for  a  Roman-Catholic  journal  which  suddenly  became  an 
organ  of  the  spiritists. 

The  advertiser  acquires  no  more  rights  in  the  newspaper  than  the 
subscriber.  He  is  entitled  to  use  the  space  for  which  he  pays  by  the  in- 
sertion of  such  material  as  is  approved  by  the  editor.  He  gains  no  in- 


PERIOD   OF   FINANCIAL   READJUSTMENT    355 

terest  in  any  other  part  of  the  paper,  and  has  no  more  claim  to  any 
space  in  the  editorial  columns,  than  any  other  one  of  the  public.  To 
give  him  such  space  would  be  unbusinesslike,  and  the  extension  of  a 
preference  which  would  be  unjust  to  the  rest  of  the  public.  Nothing 
more  quickly  destroys  the  character  of  a  journal,  begets  distrust  of  it, 
and  so  reduces  its  value,  than  the  well-founded  suspicion  that  its  edi- 
torial columns  are  the  property  of  advertisers.  Even  a  religious  journal 
will,  after  a  while,  be  injured  by  this. 

To  be  just  to  Mr.  Warner,  and  to  inform  the  reader  that  in  this 
" commercialization  of  the  press"  the  second  claim  of  Manton 
Marble,  of  The  New  York  World,  was  not  completely  overlooked, 
a  comment  from  "The  American  Newspaper"  should  be  given 
in  this  connection :  — 

It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  say,  except  to  prevent  a  possible  misap- 
prehension, that  the  editor  who  has  no  high  ideals,  no  intention  of  bene- 
fiting his  fellow-men  by  his  newspaper,  and  uses  it  unscrupulously  as 
a  means  of  money-making  only,  sinks  to  the  level  of  the  physician  and 
the  lawyer  who  have  no  higher  conception  of  their  callings  than  that 
they  offer  opportunities  for  getting  money  by  appeals  to  credulity,  and 
by  assisting  in  evasions  of  the  law. 

Before  taking  up  the  changes  and  historical  developments  of 
the  period,  it  should  be  said  that  The  Hartford  Courant  practiced 
what  Mr.  Warner  preached  in  "The  American  Newspaper" 
at  Saratoga  Springs  in  September,  1881. 

INCREASE   OF  ADVERTISING 

The  Period  of  Financial  Readjustment  was  marked  by  a 
tremendous  increase  in  the  amount  of  advertising  printed  in  the 
newspapers.  During  this  period  came  the  development  of  the 
great  department  stores  in  the  large  cities.  Their  increase  in  size 
may  be  traced  almost  invariably  by  the  increase  in  the  amount 
of  space  they  used  to  advertise  their  wares  in  the  newspapers. 
Stores  which  inserted  advertisements  of  a  half  a  column  at  the 
beginning  of  the  period  were  using  a  full  page  at  the  close  of  the 
century,  when  individual  stores  were  paying  as  high  as  fifty 
thousand  dollars  a  year  to  one  newspaper  in  order  to  market 
their  merchandise  to  readers.  Railroads,  instead  of  inserting  a 
time-table  occupying  two  squares  of  the  old  blanket  sheet,  be- 
came heavy  purchasers  of  space  to  advertise  the  scenic  beauty 


356       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

of  the  various  roads  and  to  attract  settlers  to  the  new  territory 
opened  up  along  their  lines.  Manufacturers  of  patent  medicines 
seemingly  entered  upon  competition  to  see  which  one  could  use 
the  most  printer's  ink  in  American  newspapers.  New  adver- 
tisers appeared  with  announcements  of  breakfast  foods,  laundry 
soaps,  baking  powders,  —  in  fact  everything  used  in  modern 
American  homes.  Local  gas  companies  urged  women  to  "cook 
with  gas";  electric  light  and  power  companies  pointed  out  how 
easy  it  was  to  attach  the  sewing  machine  to  the  current  from  the 
incandescent  light;  telephone  companies  started  campaigns  to 
get  housewives  to  "shop  by  wire";  book  publishers,  usually  the 
most  conservative  advertisers,  caught  the  advertising  fever  and 
by  the  close  of  the  period  were,  in  exceptional  cases,  using  a 
whole  page  in  certain  newspapers  to  advertise  a  popular  novel; 
etc.  Classified  advertising  grew  from  a  column  or  two  of  "Help 
Wanted"  and  "Houses  to  Let"  to  several  pages.  The  worst 
feature  of  this  tremendous  increase  in  the  amount  of  advertising 
was  the  fact  that  it  was  possible  to  insert  at  a  higher  cost  almost 
any  advertisement  disguised  as  a  bit  of  news.  Sometimes  these 
paid  reading  notices  of  advertisers  were  distinguished  by  star  or 
dagger,  but  more  frequently  there  was  no  sign  to  indicate  to  the 
reader  that  the  account  had  been  bought  and  paid  for  and  was 
not  a  regular  news  item. 

JOURNALISM  THAT  MAKES   NEWS 

Though  the  journalism  that  makes  news  really  started  when 
The  New  York  Herald  sent  Henry  Morton  Stanley  to  find  David 
Livingstone,  the  English  missionary  who  was  lost  "somewhere  in 
Africa,"  the  newspapers  were  somewhat  slow  in  sowing  seed  in  a 
field  so  long  fallow.  The  Herald  on  July  2.  1872.  startled  the 
world  with  its  exclusive  announcement  that  Stanlej£-had  found 
Livingstonfi_atUjiji  and  that  the  latter  had  discovered  the  source 
oFTHeNile.  At  the  time  this  remarkable  piece  of  news  was 
looked  upon  as  a  piece  of  good  fortune  on  the  part  of  an  American 
war  correspondent  who  had  been  sent  to  witness  the  opening  of 
the  Suez  Canal,  to  report  the  results  of  Baker's  Expedition  up 
the  Nile,  to  learn  the  truth  about  the  Russian  Expedition  bound 
for  Khiva,  and  to  write  interesting  letters  from  Bagdad,  Persep- 


PERIOD   OF   FINANCIAL   READJUSTMENT    357 

oils,  etc.  ^Stanley's  achievement  possibly  caused  a  greater  sensa- 
tion in  England  than  in  America.  The  London  papers  promptly 
acknowledged  the  achievement  of  The  New  York  Herald.  The 
London  Post  went  so  far  as  to  say  that  the  expedition  surpassed 
everything  which  had  hitherto  been  achieved  by  journalistic 
enterprises. 

EXTRAMURAL   ACTIVITIES 

The  example  set  by  The  Herald  later  led  other  American  news- 
papers to  undertake  humanitarian  enterprises  which  had  not 
been  formerly  assoYiuied  With  the  editing  and  making  of  a  news- 
paper. Such  enterprises  became  more  distinctly  local,  but  the 
sum  total  of  good  accomplished  was  greater  than  the  more  sen- 
sational finding  of  a  man  lost  in  the  wilds  of  Africa.  Among  these 
humanitarian  enterprises  was  the  establishment  of  a  Free-Iae 
Fund  by  The  New  York  Herald.  On  May  29,  1§92,  the  paper 
thaThad  sent  $ta"nley  to  rmd  Livingstone  laid  before  its  readers 
a  proposal  to  furnish  free  ice  for  the  relief  of  mothers  and  babies' 
in  the  tenement-house  districts  of  New  York.  The  fund,  started 
with  a  donation  of  five  hundred  dollars  by  The  Herald,  met  with 
the  enthusiastic  encouragement  of  charity  organizations,  wel- 
fare workers,  physicians,  and  others,  who  longed  to  do  something 
to  relieve  the  distress  which  the  extreme  heat  produced  in  tene- 
ment districts.  On  July  2  of  that  year  The  Herald  distributed  six- 
teen thousand  pounds  of  ice  from  seven  different  stations  with 
the  result  that  over  one  hundred  families  were  benefited.  When 
the  season  closed  on  September  15,  over  forty  thousand  pounds 
of  ice  were  being  distributed  daily  from  fifteen  stations  in  the 
poorer  sections  of  the  city  for  the  benefit  of  about  twelve  thou- 
sand, five  hundred  men,  women,  and  children.  During  the  ex- 
treme hot  summer  of  1914  a  daily  average  of  seven  hundred 
thousand  pounds  were  distributed  among  twenty-two  thousand 
families.  The  ice  was  distributed  upon  presentation  of  tickets 
secured  on  the  recommendation  of  social  workers,  physicians, 
ministers,  and  others  who  were  familiar  with  the  needs  of  the 
people  living  in  the  district  of  the  station. 

Somewhat  similar  to  the  Free-Ice  Fund  was  the  JFresh-Air 
Fund  originally  associated  with  The  New  York  Evening^Post,  but 


358       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

taken  over  by  The  New  York  Tribune  in  1881.  This  movement 
was  a  practical  application  of  the  text  from  which  the  Reverend 
Willard  Parsons,  a  young  clergyman,  preached  at  Sherman, 
Pennsylvania,  on  June  3, 1877:  "  Inasmuch  as  you  have  done  it 
unto  the  least  of  these,  my  brethren,  you  have  done  it  unto  me." 
In  the  course  of  his  sermon  he  outlined  the  distress  which  pre- 
vailed in  that  section  of  New  York  where  he  once  had  a  mission 
church  and  urged  that  his  parishioners  alleviate  such  suffering  by 
taking  into  their  homes  for  brief  periods  during  the  summer  some 
of  the  children  from  the  tenements.  From  the  time  that  The 
Tribune  became  interested,  it  worked  along  two  lines:  first,  it 
provided  outings  for  children  in  private  families  in  the  country; 
second,  it  provided  outings  for  children  in  so-called  fresh-air 
homes  and  camps  maintained  by  the  Fund  annually  raised  by  the 
paper.  Except  in  rare  instances  no  organization  except  The 
Tribune  has  attempted  to  provide  outings  in  the  first  of  these  two 
ways.  Later,  many  organizations  started  sending  children  to 
institutional  homes  and  camps  for  brief  rests  during  the  summer. 
The  Tribune,  in  connection  with  this  Fund,  now  maintains  some 
ten  homes  and  camps.  It  utilizes  these  primarily  for  special 
classes  of  children  for  whom  it  is  either  unwise  or  impossible  to 
secure  the  hospitality  of  private  families  such  as  negro  children, 
under-nourished  children,  tubercular  children,  etc.  In  1881  The 
Tribune  sent  thirty-two  hundred  to  the  country  for  two  weeks, 
and  in  1900,  the  year  in  which  the  period  closed,  it  sent  seven 
thousand,  four  hundred  and  thirty-one.  The  maximum  number 
was  in  1892,  when  fifteen  thousand,  two  hundred  and  sixty-seven 
were  sent.  The  price  of  board  in  the  country,  the  amount  of 
annual  subscriptions,  etc.,  are  factors  which  determine  the  num- 
ber which  can  be  helped.  The  Tribune  has  aided  in  establishing 
a  similar  movement  in  other  countries:  in  England  it  is  known  as 
"The  Country  Fortnight"  and  in  France,  as  "Les  (Euvres  du 
Grand  Air." 

Special  attention  has  been  given  the  enterprises  just  mentioned 
because  they  were  pioneer  humanitarian  enterprises  of  the  press. 
Other  papers,  however,  have  attended  to  other  things  than  put- 
ting ink  on  paper.  The  Press,  of  Pittsburgh,  Pennsylvania,  started 
a  subscription  which  raised  forty  thousand  dollars  to  build  a 


PERIOD   OF  FINANCIAL   READJUSTMENT    359 

home  for  the  newsboys  of  that  city.  It  raised  a  fund  to  erect  a 
monument  to  the  memory  of  Steven  C.  Foster,  a  native  of  Pitts- 
burgh, who  wrote  "The  Old  Folks  at  Home";  it  started  a  young 
folks  league,  a  baseball  club,  a  brass  band  and  drum  corps,  two 
clubs  for  girls,  an  athletic  league,  etc.  The  Times,  of  Troy,  New 
York,  following  the  example  set  by  The  New  York  Tribune, 
started  its  Fresh- Air  Fund  by  which  hundreds  of  children  could 
get  the  benefits  of  a  two  weeks'  vacation  at  the  fresh-air  home 
erected  by  The  Times  in  the  mountains  of  Rensselaer  County. 
\The  Tribune,  of  Chicago,  Illinois,  initiated  two  reforms  which 
developed  into  a  national  movement,  that  of  a  "Sane  Fourth  of 
July"  and  the  "Good  Fellow  Club,"  the  object  of  which  was  to 
make  the  children  of  the  poor  acquainted  with  Santa  Claus.  The 
News  of  Indianapolis,  Indiana,  built  a  fresh-air  village  for  sick 
women  and  children,  in  addition  to  building  several  public  mon- 
uments. But  in  doing  this  The  News  did  not  forget  that  such 
humanitarian  enterprises  could  begin  closer  at  home.  It  es- 
tablished a  sub-station  system  of  delivering  papers  to  boys  in  the 
neighborhood  where  they  lived  and  appointed  a  district  man 
to  look  over  them,  to  keep  in  touch  with  their  parents,  and  to 
guard  them  as  jealously  as  a  school  teacher,  and  above  all  to 
teach  them  business  thrift.  In  this  way  The  News  eliminated  the 
old-style  newsboy  with  dirty  face  and  worn  shoes.  The  Press,  of 
Grand  Rapids,  Michigan,  was  one  of  the  pioneer  papers  to 
carry  on  all-round  welfare  work  for  its  newsboys.  Knowing  that 
boys  like  a  noise,  it  started  two  bands,  a  senior  and  a  junior,  the 
latter  to  teach  the  rudiments  of  music  to  beginners.  It  went  into 
the  business  of  education  to  start  a  day  school  for  the  lads  han- 
dling the  noon  editions  and  the  extras :  to  be  sure,  the  school  was 
ungraded,  but  the  teacher,  always  a  high-grade  woman  with  a 
good  salary,  has  taught  the  boys  from  the  poorer  families  so  well 
that  the  movement  has  the  endorsement  of  public  school  offi- 
cials. To  its  Hoe  press  it  added  the  strange  equipment  of  baths 
and  a  swimming-pool  for  the  use  of  its  boys.  It  put  in  a  lunch 
counter  where  the  carriers  could  get  sandwiches,  milk,  buns,  etc., 
for  less  than  cost.  The  crowning  feature  of  the  welfare  work  of 
The  Press  has  been  the  "Happy  Hour"  held  in  its  own  halls 
every  Sunday  afternoon.  Here  the  programme  begins  with  a  flag 


360       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

service  full  of  thrillers  and  closes  with  motion  pictures.  The 
Journal,  of  Milwaukee, Wisconsin,  early  started  a  similar  welfare 
movement  for  its  carriers.  The  Nashville  Tennessean,  at  Nash- 
ville, Tennessee,  soon  devoted  its  attentions  to  the  school  children 
of  the  city  and  at  its  own  expense  it  provided  public  lectures  to 
amuse,  entertain,  and  instruct  the  children.  Its  manager  recently 
said:  "  It  is  far  from  the  province  of  the  daily  press  to  print  only 
the  news  —  a  newspaper  should  be  a  community  and  section 
builder."  The  Chronicle,  of  San  Francisco,  California,  was  in- 
strumental in  establishing  the  zoological  gardens  in  1880;  it 
started  the  movement  for  the  Golden  Gate  Park  Museum  in 
1885.  The  Examiner,  of  the  same  city,  erected  the  Little  Jim 
Hospital  for  Incurables  and  the  Free  Eye  and  Ear  Infirmary 
for  the  treatment  of  unfortunate  children  of  the  poorer 
classes.  If  space  permitted,  many  other  humanitarian  news- 
paper enterprises  could  be  mentioned,  but  the  beginnings  of 
the  movement  distinctly  belong  to  the  Period  of  Financial 
Readjustment. 

PRESS  AS  DETECTIVE 

With  the  financial  readjustment  many  newspapers  not  only 
undertook  humanitarian  enterprises,  but  also  assumed  other 
extramural  activities.  Not  content  with  mere  publicity  for 
crime,  the  press  in  numerous  cities  undertook  active  detective 
work  in  locating  criminals.  Mention  might  be  made  of  how  The 
Daily  News,  of  Chicago,  Illinois,  followed  D.  E.  Spencer,  presi- 
dent of  the  State  Savings  Institution,  who  had  absconded  with 
something  like  half  a  million  dollars  from  the  vaults  of  the  Bank 
of  Chicago,  step  by  step  across  Canada,  over  the  Atlantic  and 
thence  through  Europe  until  it  finally  located  him  at  Stuttgart; 
or  how  The  Argus,  of  Albany,  New  York,  after  the  police  of  that 
city  were  completely  baffled  in  an  attempt  to  locate  a  kidnapper, 
not  only  found  the  child,  but  also  captured  the  criminal. 

The  most  remarkable  instance,  however,  was  possibly  the 
identification  by  The  World,  of  New  York,  of  the  man  who  made 
an  attempt  upon  the  life  of  Russell  Sage.  Isaac  D.  White,  then  a 
reporter  on  The  World  and  now  head  of  its  Bureau  of  Accuracy 
and  Fair  Play,  secured  a  button  from  the  trousers  and  a  piece  of 


PERIOD  OF  FINANCIAL   READJUSTMENT    361 

cloth  from  the  clothing  of  the  would-be  murderer.  The  button 
was  stamped  "  Brooks,  Boston."  Going  to  that  city  White 
found  that  there  was  only  one  tailor  by  the  name  of  Brooks  and 
that  he  still  had  his  roll  of  cloth  like  the  sample  cut  from  the 
trousers.  Investigation  of  the  order  books  proved  that  material 
for  only  one  pair  of  trousers  had  been  cut  from  it.  It  was  com- 
paratively easy  to  find,  by  means  of  the  tag  number  of  the  roll, 
the  name  and  address  of  the  man  for  whom  the  trousers  had  been 
made:  the  address  was  the  business  office  of  Norcross  at  Boston. 
White,  on  going  to  this  office,  learned  that  Norcross  had  been 
away  for  several  days.  He  then  went  to  the  home  of  Norcross  in 
Somerville,  where  he  found  that  the  man  had  been  missing  for 
several  days  and  that  his  disappearance  had  greatly  worried  the 
family.  The  parents  of  Norcross  recognized  the  sample  of  cloth- 
ing and  came  to  New  York  with  White,  where  they  identified  the 
head  of  their  son. 

Many  other  illustrations  might  be  given  of  the  excellent  work 
that  the  press  has  done  in  the  field  of  detection  of  criminals. 
Every  police  commissioner  in  the  city  of  New  York  who  has 
proved  himself  competent  to  hold  that  office  has  frankly  ad- 
mitted the  great  assistance  of  the  press.  In  every  great  city  there 
is  only  one  thing  members  of  the  police  department  fear,  that  is, 
the  exposure  of  their  incompetence  by  the  daily  press.  Pub- 
licity for  the  defenders  of  the  law  has  accomplished  almost  as 
much  good  as  publicity  for  the  offenders  of  the  law. 

PRESS   VS.    PRESIDENTS 

The  question  of  a  presidential  third  term  again  came  up  for 
discussion  in  the  press  in  1880.  Grant  had  returned  from  a  most 
spectacular  trip  around  the  world  and  his  friends  again  started 
a  movement  in  the  newspapers  for  a  third-term  nomination. 
There  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  Grant  in  this  instance  did 
not  desire  such  an  honor,  but  was  used  simply  as  a  tool  by  Roscoe 
Conkling,  the  senior  Senator  from  New  York,  to  prevent  the 
nomination  of  James  G.  Blaine,  who  had  become  such  an  im- 
portant Republican  leader  that  he  was  disputing  the  field  with 
Conkling.  The  struggle  was  even  more  bitter  than  in  a  former 
contest.  Editorial  pages  in  the  opposition  press  fairly  bristled 


362       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

with  almost  a  standing  caption  over  the  leading  article,  "Any- 
thing to  Beat  Grant."  The  result,  as  every  student  knows,  was 
that  both  Grant  and  Elaine  were  defeated  and  the  nomination 
went  to  James  A.  Garfield. 

CARTOON   REVIVED 

To  The  NM$  York  World  belongs  the  honor  of  reviving  the 
cartoon,  the  wordless  editorial  of  American  journalism.  From 
the  time  that  Franklin  had  cut  a  snake  into  eight  parts,  each  part 
representing  a  section  of  the  country,  and  published  the  same  in 
his  Gazette  under  the  caption  "Join  or  Die,"  cartoons  had  ap- 
peared spasmodically  in  the  American  press  —  usually  at  times 
of  great  political  or  national  excitement.  The  New  York  World, 
however,  was  the  first  newspaper  to  make  the  cartoon  a  regular 
feature.  Its  first  cartoon,  printed  on  August  10,  1884,  was  en- 
titled "  The  Difference  Between  Two  Knights,"  and  was  a  con- 
trast of  Blaine  and  Cleveland.  This  cartoon  was  not  signed.  In 
August,  1884,  The  World  began  in  its  Sunday  issue  a  series  of 
political  cartoons  which  attracted  a  great  deal  of  attention  and 
so  increased  its  circulation  that  new  presses  had  to  be  ordered. 
So  popular,  indeed,  were  these  cartoons  that  they  were  introduced 
into  the  daily  edition.  Of  these  early  cartoons  none  was  more 
popular  than  that  entitled  "  Belshazzar's  Feast,"  which  ap- 
peared on  August  30  and  dealt  with  the  coming  presidential  elec- 
tion of  the  Cleveland-Elaine  Campaign.  It  occupied  half  of  the 
first  page  and  showed  the  Republican  chiefs  in  the  robes  of 
Babylonian  revelers  at  the  Belshazzar  banquet  of  Special  Priv- 
ilege. Though  the  cartoon  was  crudely  drawn,  it  had  a  certain 
strength  which  caused  it  to  be  remembered  long  after  Cleveland 
was  elected  to  the  Presidency. 

FIGHT  OF   TYPOGRAPHICAL  UNION 

In  1884  The  New  York  Tribune  possibly  aided  the  election  of 
Grover  Cleveland  —  though  not  through  the  support  of  its  edi- 
torial page.  This  assistance,  such  as  it  was,  grew  out  of  a  strike 
which  started  in  December  of  1883  when  the  Typographical 
Union  decided  upon  a  boycott  of  the  paper  because  of  some  dis- 
agreement about  wages  of  printers.  A  circular  was  sent  to  labor 


PERIOD   OF   FINANCIAL  READJUSTMENT    363 

organizations  throughout  the  United  States  to  announce  the  boy- 
cott and  to  ask  the  withdrawal  of  all  support  from  The  Trib- 
une. Pressure  was  brought  to  bear  to  get  advertisers  to  with- 
draw from  the  columns  of  The  Tribune  and  a  weekly  paper,  The 
BQTJ cotter,  was  started  to  induce  other  trade  unions  to  take  up  the 
fight.  As  the  strike  at  the  start  proved  unsuccessful,  the  Union 
decided  to  enter  politics,  for  The  Tribune  was  considered  at  that 
time  the  leading  exponent  of  the  principles  of  the  Republican 
Party.  A  committee  was  sent  to  the  Republican  National  Con- 
vention, when  it  met  in  Chicago  on  June  3  of  the  following  year, 
to  inform  the  delegates  that  the  policy  of  The  Tribune  was  hos- 
tile to  organized  labor  and  to  request  the  convention  to  repudiate 
that  paper  as  a  Republican  organ.  When  no  satisfaction  was 
received,  the  Union  in  August  passed  a  resolution  that  "  until  the 
Republican  National  Committee  give  us  written  assurance  that 
they  will  repudiate  The  Tribune  the  future  policy  of  The  Boy- 
cotter  shall  be  to  boycott  The  Tribune  and  James  G.  Elaine."  In 
spite  of  the  activity  of  political  leaders  to  adjust  the  dispute, 
The  Tribune  was  not  repudiated  and  many  of  the  Union  printers 
decided  to  vote  against  Elaine.  As  Cleveland  carried  New  York 
State  by  a  plurality  of  only  1144  votes,  and  as  the  Union  num- 
bered over  3500  printers,  the  assertion  has  been  made  that,  New 
York  being  the  pivotal  State  in  the  election,  Elaine  was  defeated 
because  The  Tribune  refused  to  come  to  terms.  A  year  later  the 
Republican  State  Committee  took  the  matter  up  with  The  Trib- 
une in  order  to  bring  about  a  settlement  of  the  controversy,  and 
a  satisfactory  agreement  was  finally  reached  so  that  by  1892  the 
Union  announced  its  willingness  to  send  a  committee  to  the  Na- 
tional Republican  Convention  at  Minneapolis  to  declare  that  all 
hostilities  against  The  Tribune  and  against  the  Republican  Party 
had  ceased. 

BRYAN  AND   PARTY   PRESS 

When  William  Jennings  Bryan  was  nominated  for  the  Presi- 
dency at  the  Democratic  Convention  held  in  Chicago  in  1896, 
many  of  the  Democratic  papers  refused  to  support  the  party 
ticket  because  of  the  stand  taken  by  the  nominee  on  the  question 
of  free  silver.  Colonel  A.  K.  McClure,  editor  of  The  Philadelphia 


364       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Times,  thus  summed  up  the  remarkable  editorial  change  in 
policy  of  these  papers:  - 

A  number  of  the  leading  newspapers  of  the  country  which  had  sup- 
ported Cleveland  in  his  three  contests  repudiated  the  Chicago  platform 
and  its  candidate,  and  they  stood  in  the  forefront  of  American  jour- 
nalism. Not  one  of  them  ever  had  conference  or  communication  with 
the  McKinley  leaders,  or  received  or  proposed  any  terms  for  their  sup- 
port, or  ever  sought,  accepted,  or  desired  favors  from  the  McKinley 
administration.  Some  of  them  suffered  pecuniary  sacrifice,  but  they  per- 
formed a  heroic  duty,  and  it  was  the  inspiration  they  gave  to  the  con- 
servative Democratic  sentiment  of  the  country  that  made  McKinley 
President  by  an  overwhelming  majority. 

This  opposition  of  the  press  undoubtedly  explains  the  criticism 
which  Mr.  Bryan  later  showered  upon  newspapers  in  general  and 
those  of  New  York  State  in  particular.  The  New  York  World  in 
explaining  its  own  course  said,  "  Never  before  in  a  Presidential 
campaign  had  the  leading  newspaper  of  either  party  declined  to 
support  the  ticket  and  platform  presented  by  the  politicians,  not 
only  without  loss  of  power  and  prestige,  but  actually  with  a  gain 
in  both." 

Yet  it  was  to  this  New  York  newspaper  that  Grover  Cleveland 
once  said  he  owed  his  election  to  the  Presidency. 

JOURNALISM   DURING  WAR  WITH   SPAIN 

In  the  war  with  Spain,  the  American  war  correspondent  reached 

Arthur  Brisbane  has  told  what  it 


meant  to  report  that  conflict  in  the  American  press.  It  meant,  to 
quote  his  own  words:  - 

To  cover  the  field  of  possible  action  in  advance  from  Manila  to  Porto 
Rico;  to  place  the  right  man  in  the  right  place,  select  the  man  through 
intuition;  to  secure  boats  and  arrange  telegraphic  facilities;  to  get  the 
news  into  the  office  first,  into  the  newspaper  first,  on  the  street  and  all 
over  the  country  first;  to  sift  the  kernel  of  fact  from  the  mass  of  rumors; 
to  exercise  discretion  and  reasonable  conservatism  without  falling  be- 
hind in  the  great  fight  for  news  priority  and  supremacy;  to  meet  the 
problems  of  circulation  grown  suddenly  to  be  vastly  in  excess  of  the 
mechanical  facilities;  and  —  with  the  weaker  papers  —  to  meet  with 
limited  capital  the  problem  of  expense  unlimited,  to  make  mental  re- 
source replace  the  hard  money  sinews  of  the  newspaper  war  reporter. 


PERIOD   OF   FINANCIAL   READJUSTMENT    365 

The  explosion  which  sank  the  Maine  occurred  on  Friday  eve-  . 
ning,  February  15,  1898,  at  9.40  o'clock.  The  first  reports  from 
Havana,  however,  did  not  reach  the  New  York  papers  until 
about  half-past  two  the  following  morning.  Yet  before  noon  of 
that  day  a  tug  chartered  by  The  New  York  World  left  Key  West 
with  three  divers  on  board.  The  correspondent  of  The  World  at 
Havana  received  the  following  instructions  by  cable :  — 

Have  sent  divers  from  Key  West  to  get  actual  truth,  whether  favor- 
able or  unfavorable.  First  investigation  by  divers  with  authentic  re- 
sults worth  one  thousand  dollars,  extra  expense,  to-morrow  alone. 

When  the  boat  chartered  by  The  World  reached  the  Maine  its 
divers  were  not  allowed  to  make  any  investigation  and  the  only 
direct  result  to  The  World  from  this  expedition  was  an  expense 
amounting  to  one  thousand  dollars.  Yet  this  incident  was  fairly 
typical  of  the  enormous  expense  to  which  American  newspapers 
were  put  in  reporting  the  war.  One  New  York  newspaper  re- 
ported that  it  spent  on  the  average  of  three  thousand  dollars  a 
day  during  the  entire  war.  > 

Immediately  after  the  sinking  of  the  Maine,  correspondents 
from  all  the  leading  papers  hastened  to  Havana.  From  the  start 
they  met  continued  opposition  from  the  Spanish  censor,  who 
sometimes  let  what  they  wrote  go  through,  but  who  just  about 
as  often  threw  their  communications  into  the  waste-basket.  To 
overcome  this  difficulty  several  of  the  more  influential  American 
newspapers  chartered  special  boats  to  ply  between  Havana  and 
Key  West.  Their  cargo  consisted,  as  one  war  correspondent  put 
it,  "of  a  little  package  of  copy  which  a  man  might  carry  in  the 
vest  pocket  of  his  coat."  After  the  blockade  was  established  the 
newspapers  had  to  increase  the  number  of  boats,  which  patroled 
the  waters  of  the  West  Indies.  All  this,  of  course,  meant  a  tre- 
mendous expense  for  getting  the  news  from  Cuba. 

After  the  correspondents  were  compelled  to  leave  Havana  and 
the  blockade  was  firmly  established,  it  became  still  more  dif- 
ficult to  get  news  through  the  lines.  Some  of  the  newspapers, 
which  up  to  that  time  had  been  gathering  news  separately,  now 
pooled  their  interests  in  self-preservation. 

As  the  war  progressed,  newspapers  had  additional  difficulties 


366       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

to  meet.  There  were  only  two  cables  between  Key  West  and  the 
mainland  of  Florida.  Because  the  official  Government  dispatches 
took  precedence  over  everything  else,  correspondents  found  that 
the  cables  were  soon  overloaded  and  they  had  to  wait  the  pleas- 
ure of  the  Government.  Some  of  the  newspapers  then  made  ar- 
rangements to  run  their  dispatch  boats  to  Miami  on  the  main 
coast  of  Florida.  This  trip  took  longer,  but  it  got  the  messages 
through. 

After  the  American  correspondents  left  Havana,  several  of 
them  joined  the  insurgents  and  thus  kept  in  touch  with  what  was 
going  on.  Every  so  often  they  returned  to  some  point  on  the 
coast  where  they  were  met  by  dispatch  boats  which  forwarded 
their  copy  to  their  newspapers. 

When  Sampson  sailed  for  Porto  Rico,  correspondents  sta- 
tioned at  Key  West  found  that  the  censor  had  placed  an  embargo 
on  any  word  relating  to  the  departure  for  San  Juan.  One  cor- 
respondent, in  spite  of  this  censorship,  managed  to  get  the  in- 
formation, as  he  thought,  to  his  managing  editor  in  New  York. 
The  latter,  with  a  stupidity  unusual  in  newspaper  work,  failed 
to  interpret  the  news  in  the  personal  message,  "Tell  father  to 
send  my  valise  to  San  Juan,"  and  cabled  the  reply,  "Can't  find 
father,  send  better  address."  By  this  time  the  Key  West  censor, 
who  was  Lieutenant-Colonel  Allen,  of  the  Signal  Corps,  had  read 
between  the  lines  and  refused  to  allow  the  correspondent  to  send 
any  more  personal  messages.  The  correspondents,  however, 
were  poorly  prepared  to  report  the  sea  fight  outside  of  Santiago. 
Of  all  the  dispatch  boats  on  the  south  side  of  the  island  only  two 
were  present  at  the  time  Cervera's  fleet  was  destroyed.  The  ex- 
planation was  that  none  of  the  newspaper  correspondents  thought 
that  Cervera  would  come  out  and  were  devoting  all  their  atten- 
tion to  the  exciting  events  on  the  island. 

Correspondents  located  in  Madrid  had  their  problems  almost 
as  difficult  as  those  of  their  brethren  in  Havana.  The  cable  com- 
panies took  their  messages,  but  neglected  to  forward  the  same  to 
New  York.  In  vain  did  the  correspondents  protest  that  either 
the  messages  should  be  sent  or  the  money  returned.  The  Ameri- 
can newspapers  spent  thousands  of  dollars  for  which  they  never 
received  a  single  word  of  news.  Later,  the  American  correspond- 


PERIOD   OF   FINANCIAL   READJUSTMENT    367 

ents  in  Madrid  sent  their  news  by  special  couriers  to  France, 
thence  the  messages  were  sent  without  censorship,  and  without 
other  molestation  from  authorities.  Such  messages  had  to  be 
paid  for  in  gold  and  in  advance  and  the  expense  for  this  service 
for  one  New  York  newspaper  totaled  over  two  thousand  dollars 
a  week.  After  the  Manila  cable  was  cut,  a  certain  newspaper  in 
order  to  be  first  with  the  news  chartered  a  special  dispatch  boat  to 
run  to  Hong  Kong  and  thereafter  sent  its  war  news  by  cable  from 
that  place  at  $1.80  a  word. 

At  home  the  American  newspapers  were  put  to  great  expense 
in  being  forced  to  get  out  extra  editions.  The  New  York  Evening 
Journal,  for  example,  printed  as  many  as  forty  editions  in  a  single 
day,  and  The  Evening  World  nearly,  if  not  quite,  as  many.  The 
size  of  editions  reached  startling  figures :  one  New  York  news- 
paper, for  example,  frequently  printed  over  one  million  copies  a 
day  and  failed  even  with  such  an  output,  to  meet  the  demand. 

APPEARANCE   OF   BIG   HEADLINES 

m 

The  immediate  effect  of  the  war  with  Spain  upon  American 
journalism  wa^  thp  laf§e-&tceamer  headline.  During  the  war  the 
headline  of  the  most  important  item,  or  news  story,  stretched 
itself  across  the  page.  It  not  only  increased  in  width,  but  also  in 
length,  until  some  of  the  more  sensational  newspapers  used  one 
which  occupied  fully  one  half  of  the  first  page,  except  a  little 
corner  where  the  name  of  the  newspaper  appeared  in  small  type. 
In  the  absence  of  exciting  news,  certain  newspapers  adopted 
rather  questionable  methods  in  the  composition  of  headlines. 
A  half-page  would  be  given  to  the  two  words  "BIG  BATTLE," 
in  large  black  letters.  Underneath  these  two  words  and  directly 
under  the  fold  of  the  page  would  be  some  qualifying  expression, 
in  small  type,  such  as  "Expected  To-morrow."  When  the  paper 
was  on  the  stand  or  when  it  was  held  aloft  by  the  newsboy,  all 
the  passer-by  could  see  was  "BIG  BATTLE."  Such  questionable 
tactics  brought  certain  papers  into  bad  repute  with  their  read- 
ers. While  the  newspapers  of  the  better  class  never  practiced 
such  deceptions,  they  did  increase  the  size  of  their  headlines. 
Even  the  World  War  did  not  produce  any  such  flaring  headlines 
in  American  newspapers  as  appeared  during  the  time  the  United 


368        HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

States  was  fighting  Spain.  The  flaring  streamer  headline  is  not 
in  itself  open  to  such  hostile  criticism  as  it  has  received:  the 
American  people,  with  their  hustle  and  bustle,  seem  to  take 
kindly  to  a  paper  which  gives  them  the  latest  news  of  the  hour 
in  a  headline  which  can  be  read  by  those  who  run  to  catch  trains, 
and  they  do  not  consider  it  a  piece  of  extravagance  to  pay  one 
cent  or  more  for  a  newspaper  which  is  prodigal  in  its  use  of 
space.  But  when  these  sensational  headlines  are  absolutely  mis- 
leading, or  feature  something  that  is  silly  or  that  has  no  per- 
manent news  interest,  they  are  open  to  just  criticism. 

NEWSPAPER   STRIKE   IN   NEW   YORK 

One  of  the  most  important  newspaper  strikes,  at  least  in  New 
York  City,  was  the  one  that  commenced  on  August  5,  1899,  in 
the  plant  of  The  Sun.  Until  July  of  that  year  The  Sun  had  put 
its  news  into  type  by  hand  composition,  —  chiefly  because  Dana 
thought  such  composition  gave  a  neater  typographical  appear- 
ance to  the  page,  —  but  it  then  determined  to  adopt  machines 
to  do  the  work.  As  the  old  hand  compositors,  not  being  familiar 
with  the  mechanism  of  the  machines,  were  unable  to  set  matter 
by  this  process,  The  Sun  was  forced  to  employ  a  number  of  ex- 
pert machinists.  According  to  a  statement  issued  by  The  Sun, 
the  old  compositors  simply  "  stood  by,  looked  on,  and  drew  their 
salaries."  The  Typographical  Union,  on  the  other  hand,  in- 
.  sisted  that  the  strike  grew  out  of  an  attempt  to  make  The  Sun 
an  open  shop,  and  pointed  by  way  of  proof  to  an  advertisement 
inserted  in  a  Philadelphia  newspaper  asking  for  compositors  to 
work  on  a  newspaper  a  short  distance  from  Philadelphia.  After 
the  strike  had  been  declared,  some  of  the  men  hired  in  Phila- 
delphia came  to  New  York  and  worked  on  The  Sun.  With  the 
s  assistance  of  The  Evening  Post,  The  Sun  was  able  to  get  out  its 
regular  issues,  but  in  reduced  size.  The  strike  was  bitterly  fought 
on  both  sides.  The  Sun,  under  Dana,  had  passed  from  a  news- 
paper  of  the  masses  to  one  of  the  upper  classes.  J^'oTttnTreason 
ifwas  better  prepared  to  stand  a  strike~than  other  morning 
papers  of  the  city  with  larger  circulation  among  the  laboring 
people.  ^Pressure  was  brought  to  bear  upon  advertisers  to  with- 
draw from  the  columns  and  the  reading  public  was  asked  in  vari- 


PERIOD   OF   FINANCIAL   READJUSTMENT    369 

ous  ways  to  boycott  the  paper.  Relief  was  sought  in  the  courts, 
and  injunctions,  forbidding  the  boycott,  were  issued.  Posters 
and  circulars  were  then  printed  after  the  style  of  the  Brisbane 
headline  —  only  reversed:  — 

It  is  illegal  to 

BOYCOTT  THE  SUN 
BOYCOTT  THE  SUN 

Hostilities  did  not  cease  until  March  12,  1902,  when  a  mutual 
agreement  was  reached,  the  strike  declared  off,  and  the  Union 
refrained  from  "further  action  repugnant  or  injurious  to  the 
paper." 

CHANGES  OF  OWNERSHIP 

During  the  Period  of  Financial  Readjustment  there  were  many 
changes  of  ownership  in  newspapers.  Of  these  only  a  few  may  be 
noticed  without  expanding  beyond  the  legitimate  limits  of  this 
volume.  On  July  1,  l8§^The_Evening  Post  in  New  York  City 
passed  into  the  control  of  Henry  V  iliard  who  had  achieved  dis- 
tinction as  a  great  railroad  builder  in  the  West.  He  was  a  man  of 
the  highest  patriotic  motives,  and  he  early  declared  his  inten- 
tion to  make  The  Evening  Post  "  independent  of  himself,  inde- 
pendent of  its  counting-room,  and  independent  of  party."  This 
intention  he  carried  out  by  putting  all  his  shares  in  trust  and 
turning  them  over  to  trustees  with  full  power  to  act.  Upon  his 
death  the  control  of  The  Evening  Post  passed  to  his  wife,  but 
his  son  Oswald  Garrison  Villard  became  the  president  of  the 
company  which  published  the  paper.  He,  too,  has  kept  The 
Post  as  independent  as  it  was  in  the  days  when  it  was  conducted 
by  William  Leggett. 

Two  activities  of  The  Post  during  this  period  deserve  more 
than  passing  mention.  In  1885-86  The  Evening  Post  rendered  a 
distinct  service  to  the  country  in  general  and  to  the  South  in 
particular  when  it  opposed  the  Blair  Educational  Bill  which  pro- 
posed to  appropriate  one  hundred  million  dollars  from  the  Na- 
tional Treasury  to  promote  negro  education  below  the  Mason 
and  Dixon  Line.  The  opposition  of  The  Post  to  this  measure 
was  based  upon  the  fact  that  its  passage  fostered  a  distinct  loss 


370       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

to  the  South,  not  only  in  self-reliance,  but  also  in  self-respect. 
During  1890  The  Post  fell  upon  Tammany  Hall,  which  it  nearly 
destroyed  by  means  of  a  series  of  biographical  sketches  of  the 
leaders  and  numerous  editorials  about  the  work  of  the  organiza- 
tion. While  numerous  warrants  were  issued  for  the  arrest  of  its 
editor  on  the  complaint  of  the  various  politicians  whose  biog- 
raphies appeared  in  The  Post,  none  of  these  cases  actually  came 
to  trial. 

i 

ARRIVAL  OF  PULITZER  IN  NEW  YORK 

The  newspapers  of  New  York  printed  an  advertisement  on 
October  31,  1876,  that  the  "Hon.  Joseph'  Pulitzer  of  Missouri 
at  eight  o'clock  at  Cooper  Union  speaks  for  Tilden,  Hendricks, 
and  Reform."  The  next  morning  The  World  had  at  the  top  of 
its  fifth  column  on  its  last  page  the  name  of  Joseph  Pulitzer  in 
black  letters  and  under  it  the  words,  "His  Stirring  Speech  at 
Cooper  Union  Last  Night. "  This  was  probably  the  first  time 
that  Mr.  Pulitzer's  name  ever  appeared  at  the  top  of  a  column 
in  The  New  York  World.  The  next  evening  he  was  one  of  the 
Democratic  speakers  at  Tammany  Hall.  Among  the  others  was 
Manton  Marble,  who,  as  editor  and  publisher  of  The  World,  had 
been  successful  in  the  first  role,  but  a  failure  in  the  second.  After 
the  speeches  were  over  the  two  gentlemen  had  a  long  conversa- 
tion about  the  possibilities  of  making  The  World  successful 
financially  in  New  York  City.  Nothing  definite  came  out  of  the 
conference  at  the  time  and  The  World  passed  into  the  control  of 
Thomas  A.  Scott,  president  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad,  who 
made  William  Henry  Hurlburt  its  editor.  Money  to  meet  the 
weekly  deficit  came  regularly  from  an  unknown  source  by  ex- 
press. 

Of  The  World  under  Hurlburt's  regime,  St.  Clair  McKelway, 
long  editor  of  The  Brooklyn  Eagle,  has  left  the  following  account: 

It  upheld  Horatio  Seymour  when  he  insisted  on  the  gold  standard 
for  New  York  State  in  a  time  of  irredeemable  paper  currency.  It  warred 
on  William  M.  Tweed's  criminal  alteration  of  the  city  charter  from 
behind  which  he  practiced  highway  robbery  to  the  tune  of  millions  in 
the  name  of  the  law.  It  made  now  and  then  a  stand  for  better  muni- 
cipal results  by  informal  fusion  of  parties.  But  it  never  sought  the  art  of 


! 


PERIOD   OF   FINANCIAL   READJUSTMENT    371 

commanding  a  living  by  the  approbation  and  confidence  of  the  masses, 
for  the  tendency  of  its  management  inclined  to  the  satisfaction  of  the 
capitalists  with  its  steadiness,  and  to  the  applause  of  the  carping,  the 
cynical,  the  sciolistic,  and  the  pessimistic  by  its  selection  and  treat- 
ment of  topics.  Its  mistaken  sense  of  humor  comprised  the  discussion 
of  serious  matters  from  a  comedy  side  and  the  discussion  of  trivial 
matters  from  a  serious  side. 

Upon  the  death  of  Scott,  The  World  passed  into  the  control 
of  other  capitalists.  During  all  this  time  the  paper  steadily  lost 
in  circulation  until  it  had  less  than  ten  thousand  in  New  York 
City,  due  doubtless  to  the  reasons  already  outlined  by  Mr. 
McKelway. 

Ever  since  his  talk  with  Manton  Marble,  after  both  had  spoken 
at  Tammany  Hall,  Pulitzer  had  watched  the  movements  of  The 
World  on  the  chance  that  he  might  sometime  become  its  owner. 
Finding  that  its  proprietors  were  willing  to  be  relieved  of  an  un- 
profitable burden,  he  purchased  the  newspaper  in  May,  1883. 
On  the  eleventh  of  that  month  he  published  over  his  own  signa- 
ture the  following  editorial :  — 

The  entire  World  newspaper  property  has  been  purchased  by  the 
undersigned,  and  will,  from  this  day  on,  be  under  different  manage- 
ment —  different  in  men,  measures  and  methods  —  different  in  purpose, 
policy  and  principle  —  different  in  objects  and  interests  —  different  in 
sympathies  and  convictions  —  different  in  head  and  heart. 

Performance  is  better  than  promise.  Exuberant  assurances  are  cheap. 
I  make  none.  I  simply  refer  the  public  to  the  new  World  itself,  which 
henceforth  shall  be  the  daily  evidence  of  its  own  growing  improvement, 
with  forty-eight  daily  witnesses  in  its  forty-eight  columns. 

There  is  room  in  this  great  and  growing  city  for  a  journal  that  is  not 
only  cheap,  but  bright,  not  only  bright  but  large,  not  only  large  but 
truly  democratic  —  dedicated  to  the  cause  of  the  people  rather  than 
that  of  purse-potentates  —  devoted  more  to  the  news  of  the  New  than 
the  Old  World  —  that  will  expose  all  fraud  and  sham,  fight  all  public 
evils  and  abuses  —  that  will  serve  and  battle  for  the  people  with  earnest 
sincerity. 

In  that  cause  and  for  that  end  solely  the  new  World  is  hereby  enlisted 
and  committed  to  the  attention  of  the  intelligent  public. 

Sidney  Brooks,  a  distinguished  London  journalist,  in  discuss- 
ing "The  American  Yellow  Press"  in  one  of  the  great  English 
reviews,  asserted  that  Joseph  Pulitzer  would  probably  be  best 


372       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

remembered  as  the  founder  of  the  yellow  press  in  America.  Yet 
Mr.  Brooks  admitted  in  the  same  article  that  Mr.  Pulitzer  con- 
ducted one  of  the  most  independent  and  most  fearless  news- 
papers hi  the  United  States.  Now  that  the  hysteria  about  yellow 
journalism  has  passed,  Mr.  Pulitzer  will  probably  be  remembered 
as  the  editor  of  the  paper  which  tried  to,  and  in  many  respects  did, 
live  up  to  the  doctrines  he  set  forth  in  making  his  bow  as  a  news- 
paper publisher  in  New  York.  Once  forced  by  competition  to 
adopt  questionable  methods  to  secure  a  circulation,  he  later 
saw  whither  such  a  course  led  and  ordered  a  "right  about  face." 

It  was  to  the  editorial  page  that  Mr.  Pulitzer  paid  most  of  his 
attention.  He  cared  little  to  be  a  great  merchant  of  news,  and 
in  the  words  of  one  of  his  associates  "the  details  of  business 
management  never  engaged  his  attention  longer  than  was  neces- 
sary." He  agreed  with  his  editorial  predecessor  on  The  World, 
Manton  Marble,  that  "the  journalist  has  it  in  trust  and  steward- 
ship to  be  the  organ  and  mould  of  public  opinion,  to  express  and 
guide  it,  and  to  seek,  through  all  conflicting  private  interests, 
solely  the  public  general  good." 

Pulitzer  died  on  board  his  private  yacht  in  the  harbor  of 
Charleston,  South  Carolina,  after  having  guided  the  editorial 
policies  of  The  World  for  not  quite  thirty  years.  Toward  the  close 
of  his  career  he  was  totally  blind,  but  he  never  let  this  affliction 
interfere  with  his  interest  in  The  World,  which  he  continued  to 
direct  through  the  liberal  use  of  the  telegraph  and  the  cable 
while  traveling  in  the  pursuit  of  health,  lost  through  too  constant 
devotion  to  his  paper. 

"  QUIETJJ   ENTRANCE   OF  HEARST 

William  Randolph  Hearst,  whose  newspaper  activities  in 
California  have  already  been  noticed,  came  to  New  York  in 
1896,  where  he  purchased  The  New  York  Journal,  founded  by 
Albert  Pulitzer,  a  brother  of  Joseph  Pulitzer,  of  The  World. 
Before  coming  East  Hearst  is  said  to  have  added  together  the 
circulation  of  all  the  New  York  dailies  and,  after  comparing  the 
total  with  the  population  of  the  city,  declared  that  there  was 
room  for  a  daily  which  met  the  needs  of  those  who  were  not  sub- 
scribing for  any  newspaper.  According  to  the  gossip  of  Park 


PERIOD  OF  FINANCIAL  READJUSTMENT    373 

Row,  Hearst  "broke  into  New  York  with  all  the  discreet  secrecy 
of  a  wooden-legged  burglar  having  a  fit  on  a  tin  roof" :  according 
to  a  member  of  the  staff  of  The  New  York  American,  Hearst,  when 
he  first  came  to  New  York,  was  compelled  to  "blow  his  horn  un^ 
usually  loud  to  attract  the  crowd,  but  once  he  secured  his  audi- 
ence he  became  more  dignified."  He  brought  with  him  all  the 
circulation  schemes  which  he  had  successfully  used  in  San  Fran- 
cisco to  increase  the  sale  of  his  Examiner,  and  in  addition  tried 
many  others  such  as  sending  New  Yorkers  each  a  card  to  which 
a  penny  had  been  attached  with  the  instructions  to  buy  a  copy 
of  The  Morning  Journal.  He  secured  many  of  the  men  whom 
Pulitzer  had  trained  and  at  once  began  to  toot  his  newspaper 
horn  so  loudly  that  even  those  who  ran  were  forced  to  hear 
that  The  Journal  had  made  a  new  entry.  Separating  the  paper 
into  two  editions,  he  later  called  the  morning  one  The  New  York 
American  while  the  evening  still  retained  the  old  name  of  The 
Journal.  In  charge  of  the  latter  he  placed  Arthur  Brisbane,  son 
of  Albert  Brisbane,  who  had  worked  with  Greeley  on  The  Trib- 
une. Brisbane  by  still  more  sensational  methods  advanced  the 
circulation  by  leaps  and  bounds  until  The  New  York  Evening 
Journal  led  all  other  American  newspapers  in  number  of  copies 
printed.  Not  until  the  next  period  did  Hearst  enter  the  news- 
paper field  in  Boston,  Chicago,  Los  Angeles,  etc. 

FIRST  APPEARANCE   OF  MUNSEY 

In  1891  Frank  A.  Munsey  purchased  The  Star,  a  daily  which 
had  been  established  on  September  22,  1885.  On  February  1, 
1891,  he  changed  its  name  to  The  Daily  Continent.  A  distinguish- 
ing feature  of  The  Continent  was  its  small  size,  for  it  pre- 
sented the  news  in  tabloid  form.  Mr.  Munsey  had  the  idea  that 
a  smaller  sheet  with  the  news  presented  concisely  would  be  more 
convenient  than  the  conventional  blanket-size  newspaper.  His 
venture,  though  it  attracted  considerable  favorable  attention 
at  the  start  and  carried  a  good  deal  of  advertising,  was  not  suc- 
cessful and  was  discontinued  on  June  30,  1891.  No  other  at- 
tempt has  been  made  in  New  York  to  give  the  people  of  that 
city  a  daily  tabloid  newspaper. 


374       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

DEATH   OF   DANA 

Charles  Anderson  Dana,  so  long  editor  of  The  New  York  Sun, 
died  on  October  17,  1897.  The  paper  which  he  had  guided  for 
nearly  thirty  years  told  of  the  occurrence  in  these  two  lines:  — 

Charles  Anderson  Dana,  editor  of  The  Sun, 
died  yesterday  afternoon. 

There  were  no  inverted  column  rules,  there  was  no  long  article 
in  praise  of  the  deceased  editor.  The  announcement  in  fact  was 
typical  of  the  editor  whose  death  it  recorded.  For  a  short  time 
after  his  death,  The  Sun  was  edited  by  his  son,  Paul  Dana. 
Later,  E.  P.  —  initials  which  in  The  Sun  office  stand  for  Editorial 
Page  —  Mitchell  became  its  editor. 

Mention  has  already  been  made  how,  in  the  handling  of  news, 
Dana  wielded  a  tremendous  influence,  for  he  made  The  Sun  a 
sort  of  school  of  journalism  in  which  he  trained  bright  young 
college  men  who  had  the  itch,  or,  to  use  a  more  academic  word, 
the  urge  to  write.  Dana  saw  no  reason  why  the  news  column 
should  not  be  as  well  written  as  any  piece  of  literature,  for  to 
him  reporting  was  an  art.  He  also  insisted  that  the  headlines  of 
the  newspaper  should  have  some  sort  of  literary  form,  so  that 
The  Sun  in  time  shone  not  only  with  a  literary  finish  in  its  news 
columns,  but  also  in  its  still  larger  rays  in  the  headlines.  Dana 
liked  to  quote  Dickens  as  being  a  great  police-court  reporter;  and 
pointed  to  the  Bible  as  a  place  where  stories  were  boiled  down, 
the  story  of  the  Crucifixion,  for  example,  being  told  in  six  hun- 
dred words.  The  making  of  a  newspaper  in  all  its  phases  re- 
quired, so  he  asserted,  the  skill  of  an  artist  in  every  department, 
and  when  he  came  to  put  into  a  book  his  ideals  about  the  editing 
and  publishing  of  a  paper,  he  called  it  "The  Art  of  Newspaper 
Making." 

CHANGES  IN  CHICAGO 

The  Herald  has  been  unusually  popular  as  a  name  for  a  news- 
paper. On  March  11, 1881,  The  Herald  appeared  in  Chicago.  It 
had  obtained  the  Associated  Press  franchise  of  The  Telegraph, 
an  old  organ  of  the  Greenback-Labor  Party,  and  had  no  con- 
nection with  two  other  papers  of  the  same  name  which  had  been 


PERIOD   OF   FINANCIAL   READJUSTMENT    375 

established  in  Chicago.  Under  James  W.  Scott,  one  of  the  chief 
owners  of  the  United  Press,  the  paper  was  Democratic,  but  when 
The  Herald  passed  into  the  control  of  H.  H.  Kohlsaat  one  year 
before  the  historic  campaign  of  1896,  it  became  a  Republican 
paper.  The  Record  later  united  with  The  Herald  which  was  started 
almost  at  the  same  time.  It  first  appeared  on  March  31,  1881, 
as  the  morning  edition  of  The  Chicago  Daily  News  and  was  known 
as  The  Morning  News  until  January  11,  1892,  when  it  became 
The  Record.  In  March,  1901,  Frank  B.  Noyes,  who  had  been 
associated  with  his  father  on  The  Washington  Star,  became  the 
publisher  on  the  28th  of  that  month  of  the  united  papers  known 
as  The  Record-Herald,  the  name  under  which  it  was  published 
until  May,  1914,  when  James  Keeley,  in  consolidating  The  Rec- 
ord-Herald and  The  Interocean,  called  the  new  enterprise  simply 
The  Herald.  The  Interocean,  started  in  1872  as  the  political  organ 
of  the  " Stalwart"  Ring  of  the  Republican  Party  of  the  West, 
was  built  upon  the  ruins  of  The  Chicago  Republican  once  edited 
by  Charles  Anderson  Dana.  The  Chicago  Daily  News,  a  one- 
cent  evening  paper  which  first  appeared  on  December  20,  1875, 
was  started  by  Melville  E.  Stone  with  a  capital  stock  of  some- 
thing like  five  hundred  dollars  and  with  its  entire  plant  pur- 
chased on  time.  Within  eighteen  months  it  purchased  The  Chi- 
cago Post  and  Mail  and  in  this  way  secured  an  Associated  Press 
franchise.  From  the  beginning  The  Daily  News  aimed  to  make 
the  first  page  worth  the  price  of  the  paper.  It  was  one  of  the 
first  papers  to  believe  that  women  readers  were  more  valuable 
than  men.  It  published  mystery  stories  and  offered  cash  prizes 
to  women  readers  for  the  best  solution  of  the  mystery. 

The  City  Press  Association  of  Chicago  was  founded  about 
1885.  At  that  time  the  Chicago  newspapers  paid  a  great  deal  of 
attention  to  suburban  news,  printing  a  page  or  two  of  personals 
or  small  society  happenings  in  the  Chicago  suburbs.  Minor 
weddings  and  club  functions  in  Chicago  were  also  given  much 
space.  J.  T.  Sutor  conceived  the  idea  of  covering  these  events 
in  a  syndicate  way  for  the  Chicago  papers.  Sutor  started  with 
two  men  to  help  him.  The  work  was  acceptable  to  the  papers 
and  the  organization,  as  time  passed,  gradually  took  over  more 
and  more  territory  for  the  newspapers.  Various  reorganizations 


376       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

and  changes  in  management  have  occurred  since  then  and  the 
news-gathering  organization,  now  known  as  the  City  News 
Bureau  of  Chicago,  employs  over  fifty  men,  serves  all  the  Eng- 
lish papers,  and  covers  all  avenues  of  news  in  Cook  County  with 
the  exception  of  finance,  labor,  and  politics. 

NELSON   OF   KANSAS   CITY 

One  of  the  most  picturesque  figures  among  makers  of  Amer- 
ican newspapers  was  William  Rockhill  Nelson,  editor  and  pub- 
lisher of  The  Star,  of  Kansas  City,  Missouri,  from  the  date  of 
its  establishment,  September  18,  1880,  until  his  death,  April 
13,  1915.  When  The  Star,  called  by  the  local  press  "The  Twi- 
light Twinkler,"  first  began  to  shine,  it  was  a  small  four-page 
paper  and  "twinkled "  for  two  cents  a  day  or  ten  cents  per  week : 
when  its  owner  died  it  equaled  in  size  any  of  the  metropolitan 
dailies  and  shone  morning  and  evening  and  Sunday  for  the  same 
rate  of  ten  cents  per  week.  At  the  start  pennies  were  scarce 
in  Kansas  City,  where  papers  sold  for  five  cents  per  copy,  and 
Mr.  Nelson  was  forced  to  import  them  by  the  keg  from  the  United 
States  Mint  in  order  that  newsboys  might  have  the  change  for 
customers.  By  the  end  of  the  first  month  The  Star  published  a 
little  note  that  it  had  more  readers  than  any  other  newspaper 
published  there.  The  purchase  of  The  Mail  in  1882  gave  the  pa- 
per an  Associated  Press  franchise,  which  in  turn  furnished  the 
telegraph  news  so  much  needed  at  the  time.  When  The  Times 
was  bought  in  1901  it  was  made  the  morning  edition  of  The  Star 
with  the  issue  of  November  18.  The  Sunday  edition  of  The  Star 
was  begun  on  April  29,  1894.  The  delivery  of  thirteen  papers  by 
carriers  morning,  evening,  and  Sunday  for  ten  cents  per  week 
has  never  been  duplicated  by  any  other  newspaper  publisher 
in  America  and  practically  stifled  competition  in  Kansas  City. 

Two  incidents  in  the  history  of  The  Star  will  illustrate  the 
personality  of  its  founder.  An  early  issue  called  attention  to  the 
fact  that  the  town  opera  house,  owned  by  Colonel  Kersey  Coates, 
was  poorly  constructed  and  sadly  in  need  of  proper  exits.  Coates 
denied  the  danger  from  fire  and  denounced  the  editor  as  a  black- 
mailer, but  later  went  to  Nelson  and,  after  remarking  that  he 
was  going  to  reconstruct  the  opera  house,  he  added,  "The  town 


PERIOD  OF  FINANCIAL  READJUSTMENT    377 

needs  such  a  newspaper  as  yours,  and  if  you  ever  need  help, 
come  to  me."  It  was  the  same  Coates  who  helped  Nelson  raise  the 
funds  to  purchase  the  first  web  perfecting  press  used  by  The 
Star.  Years  later  a  manager  of  a  local  theater  complained  about 
the  treatment  given  him  by  The  Star  and  threatened  to  with- 
draw his  advertising  unless  a  change  was  made.  Nelson  gave 
the  change  when  he  replied,  "Out  you  go  and  out  you  stay!"  — 
a  decision  he  never  reversed. 

These  two  incidents,  selected  from  many  much  more  spec- 
tacular, explain  what  Collier's  Weekly  meant  when  it  said  in  an 
obituary  notice,  "The  founder  and  editor  of  The  Kansas  City 
Star  took  his  place  in  journalism's  Hall  of  Fame  by  kicking  in 
the  door  with  hobnailed  boots."  Nelson,  himself,  expressed  the 
same  idea,  but  more  moderately,  when  he  asserted,  "I've  tried 
to  be  gentle  and  diplomatic,  but  I've  never  done  well  in  my 
stocking  feet."  He  was  one  of  those  men  to  whom  reference 
has  already  been  made  in  this  chapter  as  being  great  editors  and 
good  business  executives.  By  means  of  The  Star  he  pulled  Kan- 
sas City  out  of  the  mud,  —  for  there  were  "no  pavements  and 
only  a  few  plank  sidewalks"  when  he  arrived,  —  and  made  it 
a  city  of  parks  and  boulevards. 

The  Star,  it  may  be  remarked  in  passing,  secured  the  inter- 
view with  General  Nelson  A.  Miles  which  led  to  the  condemna- 
tion of  the  army  supplies  used  in  Cuba  in  the  war  with  Spain. 
The  Star,  through  the  liberality  of  its  readers,  did  much  to  re- 
lieve the  starving  people  of  Matanzas,  Cuba. 


OTIS   OF   LOS  ANGELES 

raxtisb 

geles  Times,  Los  Angeles,  California,  on  August  1,  1882.  The 
paper  had  been  started  on  December  4, 1881,  and  grew  out  of  a 
weekly  which  bore  quite  a  different  name  —  The  Mirror.  The 
latter  paper  had  been  started  in  1873  as -a  little  "thumb-nail 
journal"  by  the  owners  of  a  second-hand  job  plant  in  the  hopes 
that  the  sheet  might  bring  business  to  the  office. 

On  August  5,  1890,  there  began  in  the  office  of  The  Times,  be- 
tween its  owner  and  the  local  typographical  union,  a  struggle 
which  stretched  over  a  period  of  nearly  two  decades.  The  strike 


378       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

started  in  the  offices  of  the  four  Los  Angeles  newspapers,  but 
finally  concentrated  on  The  Times.  On  October  1, 1910,  occurred 
the  widely  known  disaster  which  resulted  in  the  destruction  of 
the  building  of  The  Times  and  the  loss  of  the  lives  of  twenty 
members  of  its  force  when  the  plant  was  dynamited  by  lawless 
labor  unions.  While  the  attitude  of  the  owner  of  The  Times 
toward  organized  labor  would  not  be  within  the  scope  of  this 
book,  the  following  official  re'sume'  of  the  publisher  of  the  paper 
may  be  quoted :  — 

The  Times  has  never  objected  to  lawful  and  legitimate  organizations 
formed  and  maintained  by  laborers  in  any  branch  of  industry.  The 
paper  does  not  do  foolish  things,  but  what  it  objects  to  is  the  tyranni- 
cal management  of  labor  unions  by  the  generally  irresponsible,  always 
ignorant,  and  frequently  vicious  leaders  of  these  organizations.  There 
has  never  been  a  word  printed  in  The  Times  objecting  to  lawful  or- 
ganizations of  working  people  per  se.  All  the  fault  ever  found  in  the 
columns  of  the  paper  with  these  organizations  has  been  leveled  at 
some  gross  and  mischievous  abuse  in  the  management  of  the  organi- 
zations by  the  leaders  of  them.  It  has  been  a  fight  made  for  legitimate 
labor  more  than  for  any  other  interest  in  the  country. 

Mr.  Otis,  before  his  death,  denounced  the  destruction  of  his 
building  as  "the  crime  of  the  century."  His  side  of  the  contro- 
versy has  been  described  in  a  small  brochure  entitled  "The 
Story  of  a  Sixteen  Years'  Battle." 

OTHER  LEADERS  OF  THE  WEST 

While  the  newspapers  —  especially  in  the  East  —  were  be- 
coming more  distinctly  limpersonal  in  character,  there  were 
in  the  West  numerous  editors  who,  during  the  decade  of  1880- 
1890,  impressed  their  personalities  upon  their  newspapers. 
Among  these  leaders  of  Western  journalism  were  Murat  Hal- 
stead,  of  The  Commerial  Gazette,  John  R.  McLean,  of  The  In- 
quirer, and  Charles  P.  Taft,  of  The  Times-Star,  in  Cincinnati, 
Ohio;  Edwin  Cowles,  of  The  Leader,  William  W.  Armstrong  and 
L.  E.  Holden,  of  The  Plaindealer,  in  Cleveland,  Ohio;  General 
J.  M.  Comley,  of  The  Commercial  Telegram,  in  Toledo,  Ohio; 
W.  D.  Bickham,  of  The  Journal,  in  Dayton,  Ohio;  J.  S. 
Clarkson,  of  The  Register,  and  John  Watts,  of  The  Leader,  in 
Des  Moines,  Iowa;  John  Arkins,  of  The  Rocky  Mountain  News, 


PERIOD   OF  FINANCIAL   READJUSTMENT    379 

in  Denver,  Colorado;  John  Atkinson,  of  The  Tribune,  W.  E. 
Quinby,  of  The  Free  Press,  and  James  E.  Scripps,  of  The  Eve- 
ning News,  in  Detroit,  Michigan;  A.  H.  Belo,  of  The  News,  in 
Galveston,  Texas;  John  H.  Holliday,  of  The  News,  John  C. 
New,  of  The  Journal,  and  W.  J.  Craig,  of  The  Sentinel,  in  In- 
dianapolis, Indiana;  Henry  Watterson,  of  The  Courier- Journal, 
in  Louisville,  Kentucky;  J.  M.  Keating,  of  The  Appeal,  in 
Memphis,  Tennessee;  Horace  Rublee,  of  The  Sentinel,  and  Wil- 
liam E.  Cramer,  of  The  Evening  Wisconsin,  in  Milwaukee, 
Wisconsin;  W.  E.  Haskell,  of  The  Tribune,  and  J.  S.  McLain,  of 
The  Journal,  in  Minneapolis,  Minnesota;  A.  S.  Colyar,  of  The 
American,  in  Nashville,  Tennessee;  H.  L.  Pittock,  of  The  Ore- 
gonian,  in  Portland,  Oregon;  0.  H.  Rothaker,  of  The  Republican, 
in  Omaha,  Nebraska;  George  K.  Fitch,  of  The  Bulletin,  M.  H. 
de  Young,  of  The  Chronicle,  and  John  P.  Irish,  of  The  Daily  Alta 
California,  in  San  Francisco,  California;  William  Hyde,  of  The 
Republican,  and  Joseph  B.  McCullagh,  of  The  Globe-Democrat, 
in  St.  Louis,  Missouri;  J.  A.  Wheelock,  of  The  Pioneer  Press,  and 
Lewis  Baker,  of  The  Globe,  in  St.  Paul,  Minnesota. 

SUNDAY  PAPERS 

After  the  War  of  the  States  was  over  some  of  the  newspapers 
which  had  been  printing  an  edition  on  Sunday  suspended  pub- 
lication on  that  day.  Others,  especially  in  the  South,  continued 
their  edition  on  Sunday,  but  omitted  the  issue  on  Monday.  But 
the  reading  public  demanded  the  news  daily.  How  The  New 
York  Tribune,  which  had  discontinued  its  Sunday  edition,  dis- 
covered this  fact  has  been  described  by  Whitelaw  Reid  in  an 
address  delivered  on  the  Bromley  Foundation  at  Yale  Univer- 
sity:— 

For  a  long  time  I  resisted  the  general  tendency  to  extend  the  daily 
publication  over  into  Sunday.  Nearly  every  man  I  knew  approved  of 
this  refusal  to  print  a  Sunday  paper.  Old  friends  went  out  of  their  way 
to  congratulate  me  on  thus  setting  my  face  against  the  pernicious  habit 
of  Sunday  publication.  They  hoped  I  would  never  yield  it;  it  was  a 
noble  stand  and  gave  them  yet  greater  confidence  in  my  paper.  Fi- 
nally, as  they  kept  introducing  the  subject,  I  took  to  explaining  to  these 
excellent  and  well-meaning  men  that  my  noble  stand  seemed  to  result 
merely  in  sending  all  my  regular  readers,  when  Sunday  came,  over  to 


380       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

one  or  another  of  my  competitors;  and  next,  turning  suddenly  on  each, 
I  would  ask,  "By  the  way,  what  paper  do  you  read  on  Sunday?"  Then 
came  stammering  and  hesitation,  to  be  sure;  but  not  once,  during  the 
years  this  went  on,  did  I  fail  to  find  that,  with  the  single  exception  of 
some  of  the  clergy,  the  men  who  were  exhorting  me  to  continue  setting 
a  noble  example  for  Sabbath  observance  by  not  publishing  on  Sunday, 
were  themselves  quietly  gratifying  their  own  craving  to  know  what  was 
going  on  by  reading  some  Sunday  paper! 

Other  papers  by  costly  experience  learned  the  same  facts  and 
then  resumed  their  Sunday  issues.  The  Sunday  paper,  as  it  is 
understood  to-day,  did  not  appear  until  the  early  eighties.  Its 
development  and  enlargement  were  due  to  several  causes.  The 
department  stores,  finding  the  Sunday  edition  an  especially 
valuable  advertising  medium,  increased  their  space  to  set  forth 
the  bargain  attractions  of  the  coming  week.  The  auxiliary 
presses  purchased  by  papers  for  use  in  cases  of  emergency  were 
utilized  for  the  Sunday  edition  to  print  additional  supplements 
in  which  were  portrayed  numerous  interesting  phases  of  city 
life.  At  about  this  time,  S.  S.  McClure,  founder  of  the  magazine 
which  bears  his  name  and  later  editor  of  The  Evening  Mail,  of 
New  York  City,  began  to  retail  to  the  newspapers,  for  simul- 
taneous publication  on  Sunday,  novels  and  short  stories  by 
writers  who  had  previously  sold  their  manuscripts  only  to  the 
better-class  magazines.  In  addition  to  fiction,  special  articles 
about  men  and  matters  of  moment  were  similarly  syndicated 
for  use  in  the  Sunday  papers.  While  McClure  was  developing 
his  syndicate  service,  Morrill  Goddard,  whom  Pulitzer  had  placed 
in  charge  of  the  Sunday  edition  of  The  New  York  World,  was 
applying  psychology  to  newspaper-making.  Goddard,  knowing 
the  value  of  the  optical  center,  began  at  once  to  develop  the  il- 
lustrated features  and  to  enlarge  the  size  of  the  pictures  until 
they  spread  all  over  the  pages.  From  his  knowledge  of  psychol- 
ogy, he  knew  what  features  would  give  readers  a  thrill,  and  he 
emphasized  such  articles  so  much  that  people  came  to  buy  the 
paper  on  Sunday  not  so  much  for  its  news  as  for  its  special 
articles.  Thus  was  the  pace  set  for  the  feature  editors  who  fol- 
lowed in  Goddard's  footsteps. 

Sunday  journalism  was  strangely  influenced  by  a  Puritan 


PERIOD   OF   FINANCIAL   READJUSTMENT    381 

strain  in  the  matter  of  presentation  of  the  special  features.  By 
chance  two  early  products  of  American  printing  came  to  the 
notice  of  a  Sunday  editor.  The  first,  published  in  Boston  in 
1656,  was  entitled,  "  Spiritual  Milk  for  Boston  Babes  in  either 
England.  Drawn  out  of  the  Breasts  of  both  Testaments  for  their 
souls  nourishment  But  may  be  of  like  use  to  any  Children.  By 
John  Cotton,  B.D.,  late  Teacher  to  the  Church  of  Boston  in 
New  England";  the  second,  published  in  Cambridge  in  1657, 
was  entitled,  "The  Watering  of  the  Olive  Plant  in  Christs  Gar- 
den. Or  a  Short  Catechism  For  the  first  Entrance  of  our  Chelmes- 
ford  Children:  Enlarged  by  A  three-fold  Appendix.  By  John 
Fisk,  Pastour  of  the  Church  of  Christ  at  Chelmesford  in  New- 
England." 

"That's  the  way  to  write  captions  for  our  special  features" 
was  his  exclamation.  From  that  time  dramatization  of  fact  be- 
came the  popular  mode  of  treatment.  Did  a  special  article  tell 
how  Constantinople  was  freed  from  its  plague  of  dogs?  It  bore 
the  caption,  "Constantinople  No  Longer  a  Dog  Kennel."  Not 
only  were  the  headlines  treated  this  way,  but  the  practice  crept 
into  the  text  columns.  The  old  essay  was  dramatized  and  made 
to  live.  "Don't  preach,  write  a  parable,"  was  the  advice  given 
to  copy-writers.  Contents  of  the  Sunday  supplements  became 
not  a  story  that  was  told,  but  a  drama  that  was  enacted  before 
readers.  So  popular  was  the  new  mode  of  treatment  that  even 
magazines  adopted  it. 

Though  The  New  York  World  had  installed  in  1893  a  press 
capable  of  printing  in  colors  and  later  added  a  larger  press  of  the 
same  type,  both  were  allowed  to  lie  idle  except  to  put  a  tint  now 
and  then  on  a  supplement  page.  When  D.on.Ci  Seitz  came  to 
The  World  he  urged  that  the  color  presses  be  used  to  print  a  comic 
section  and  Pulitzer  cabled  instructions'* of  one  word,  "Experi- 
ment." Seitz  "experimented."  The  yellow  comic  came  when 
the  pressman  complained  that  "wishy-washy"  tints  gave  no 
results  and  asked  for  more  solid  colors.  R.  F.  Outcault  had  just 
submitted  to  the  Sunday  editor,  Arthur  Brisbane,  who  followed 
Goddard  in  that  capacity,  a  series  of  "  black-and- whites  "  which 
portrayed  life  in  "Hogan's  Alley."  By  way  of  experiment  the 
"kid"  in  the  pictures  was  given  a  robe  of  solid  yellow.  With  the 


382       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

arrival  of  the  " yellow  kid,"  the  success  of  the  comic  supplement 
was  assured  as  a  circulation-getter.  The  circulation  of  The 
World  on  Sunday  jumped  from  a  quarter  to  a  half  million. 
Other  papers,  following  the  example  set  by  The  World,  issued  a 
colored  comic  section  on  Sunday. 

The  addition  of  a  section  printed  on  coated,  or  glossy,  paper 
permitted  the  insertion  of  advertisements  which  had  previ- 
ously appeared  only  in  the  magazines.  Other  features  and  other 
sections  were  added  until  by  the  close  of  the  period  the  Sunday 
paper  became  a  " journalism  department  store"  wherein  every 
reader  could  find  something  for  his  amusement  and  entertain- 
ment. No  other  country  has  anything  like  the  American  Sun- 
day newspaper. 

EVENING  PAPERS 

Many  evening  papers  borrowed  some  of  the  Sunday  " stuff" 
and  became  feature  papers.  Daily  beauty  hints,  the  bedtime 
story  for  the  "kiddies,"  the  comic  "colyum,"  the  woman's  page, 
etc.,  crowded  the  space  devoted  to  the  news.  Extensive  use  of 
the  telephone  by  evening  papers  made  the  news  more  scrappy 
and  bulletin-like  in  form.  Even  the  editorial  page  was  "popular- 
ized" in  form.  The  growth  of  interest  in  baseball,  "the  great 
American  game,"  was  mirrored  in  the  "sporting  extra"  in  the 
publication  of  which  The  Evening  Sun,  of  New  York,  and  The 
Press,  of  Pittsburgh,  were  leaders.  Enlarged  size  came  when  de- 
partment stores  and  other  advertisers  learned  that  the  evening 
paper  went  to  the  home  and  was  extensively  read  by  women. 
The  change  in  the  character  of  afternoon  papers  was  most  no- 
ticeable in  the  Period  of  Financial  Readjustment. 

WILD-WEST  WEEKLIES 

Journalism,  in  what  was  popularly  called  "the  wild  and 
woolly  West,"  if  told  in  detail  would  make  a  most  interesting 
chapter.  When  a  Colt  revolver  and  a  pen  lay  side  by  side  on 
an  editor's  desk  it  was  but  natural  that  the  contents  of  his  news- 
paper should  have  a  tang  oHhe  desert,  a  flavor  of  the  sagebrush. 
The  editor  of  a  great  metropolitan  daily  never  had  "anything 
on  "  these  editors  in  the  matter  of  excitement.  Chief  among  these 


PERIOD   OF   FINANCIAL   READJUSTMENT    383 

fighting  editors  was  Alvin  S.  Peck,  who  once  boasted  that  he 
"had  run  newspapers  in  nine  different  states  and  territories,  had 
shot  eleven  men  who  took  exception  to  his  editorial  opinions, 
but  had  never  been  compelled  to  swallow  a  single  opinion  which 
he  had  uttered  in  his  newspaper  —  thanks  to  his  ever-loaded 
pistol."  He  finally  died  "with  his  boots  on"  at  the  age  of  fifty- 
one.  Another  such  editor  was  Albert  Tyson,  of  The  Rising  Star 
X-Ray,  of  Texas,  who  announced  himself  in  print  "Lying  and 
Fighting  Editor."  At  the  top  of  his  editorial  column  he  printed 
his  motto,  "  Do  Unto  Others  as  You  Would  Have  Them  Do  Unto 
You,  and  Do  It  Fust." 

These  weeklies  were  what  might  primarily  be  called  one-man 
sheets.  One  of  them,  The  Yampa  Leader,  of  Oregon,  enlarged 
upon  this  fact  in  the  following  editorial  notice :  — 

The  great  city  papers  think  they  are  smart  in  having  a  large  staff, 
and,  although  we  have  not  published  ours  before,  we  shall  do  so  to  take 
some  of  the  conceit  out  of  the  city  brethren.  The  editorial  staff  of 
The  Leader  is  composed  of:  Managing  editor,  V.  S.  Wilson;  city  editor, 
Vic  Wilson;  news  editor,  V.  Wilson;  editorial  writer,  Hon.  Mr.  Wilson; 
exchange  editor,  Wilson;  pressman,  the  same  Wilson;  foreman,  more 
of  the  same  Wilson;  devil,  a  picture  of  the  same  Wilson;  fighting 
editor,  Mrs.  Wilson. 

In  the  struggle  for  existence  these  pioneer  editors  duplicated 
the  experiences  of  the  colonial  printer.  The  editor  of  The  Gem, 
of  Flagstaff,  Arizona,  printed  an  editorial  notice  very  similar  in 
subject-matter  to  what  Peter  Zengler  once  published  in  The 
New  York  Journal.  Though  slightly  different  ia  its  phraseology 
it  read :  — 

Have  you  paid  your  subscription  yet?  Remember  even  an  editor 
must  live.  If  the  hard  times  have  struck  your  shebang,  don't  forget 
turnips,  potatoes,  and  corn  in  the  shock  are  most  as  welcome  as  hard 
cash  at  the  Gem  office.  Also  hard  wood.  Our  latch-string  is  always  out, 
or  same  (i.e.,  the  turnips,  etc.)  can  be  delivered  to  our  wife,  who  will 
give  receipt  in  our  absence. 

The  society  news  was  found  in  such  Western  journals  and 
was  just  as  interesting  as  the  "tammy-rot"  of  metropolitan 
dailies.  The  following  is  taken  from  an  account  of  a  wedding 
printed  in  The  F airplay  Flume,  of  Colorado:  — 


384       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

The  groom  wore  a  long  pair  of  overalls  and  a  cutaway  coat.  The 
bride  wore  a  calico  dress  and  apron.  They  both  looked  the  picture  of 
health,  and  were  ably  assisted  —  the  groom  by  the  bride's  sister  and 
the  bride  by  Mr.  Sam  Meadows,  a  particular  friend  of  the  groom's. 

The  titles  of  these  Western  papers  make  interesting  reading. 
For  example,  there  was  The  Hannibal  Hornet,  of  Hannibal, 
Missouri;  The  Bliss  Breeze,  of  Dallas,  Texas;  The  Arizona  Arrow, 
of  Arizona;  The  Mustang  Mail,  of  Oklahoma;  The  Mother  Lode 
Magnet,  of  California;  The  Rifle  Reville,  of  Colorado;  The 
Javelin,  of  Texas;  The  Oasis,  of  Arizona;  The  Creede  Candle,  of 
Colorado. 

These  weekly  papers  of  the  West  were  nothing  if  not  original. 
One,  for  example,  published  notices  of  births,  marriages,  and 
deaths  under  the  following  respective  headlines:  "Hatched," 
"Matched,"  and  "Dispatched."  Inducements  to  subscribers 
were  often  unique:  it  was  not  at  all  uncommon  for  such  a  paper 
to  publish  a  notice  like  the  following:  "All  subscribers  paying  in 
advance  will  be  entitled  to  a  first-class  obituary  notice  in  case 
of  death."  By  way  of  illustration  the  following  obituary  notice 
may  be  quoted  as  typical:  — 


JAKE  MOFFATT  GONE  SKYWARD! 

As  we  feared  on  hearing  that  two  doctors  had  been  called  in,  the 
life  of  our  esteemed  fellow-citizen  Jake  Moffatt  ebbed  out  on  Wednes- 
day last,  just  after  we  had  gone  to  press.  Jake  was  every  inch  a 
scholar  and  a  gentleman,  upright  in  all  his  dealings,  unimpeachable  in 
character,  and  ran  the  Front  Street  Saloon  in  the  very  toniest  style 
consistent  with  order.  Jake  never  fully  recovered  from  the  year  he 
spent  in  the  county  jail  at  the  tune  of  the  Ryan-Sternberg  fracas.  His 
health  was  shattered,  and  he  leaves  a  sorrowing  widow  and  nary  an 
enemy. 

Many  of  these  papers  were  published  in  mining  camps  and  led 
peripatetic  lives.  The  few  of  them  which  have  survived  to  the 
present  time,  while  having  the  same  name,  have  lost  their  indi- 
viduality with  the  advance  of  the  telegraph  and  the  railroad. 

PRESS  ASSOCIATIONS 

How  the  Associated  Press  in  1880  was  composed  of  smaller 
organizations  scattered  over  the  country  has  been  outlined  in 


PERIOD  OF  FINANCIAL  READJUSTMENT    385 

the  preceding  chapter.  At  various  times  discrepancies  arose 
between  a  local  branch  and  the  general  association.  On  one  occa- 
sion the  Western  Associated  Press  withdrew  from  the  general 
association  and  tried  to  maintain  an  independent  and  rival  news- 
gathering  organization.  After  a  short  period  of  competition, 
however,  the  differences  were  compromised  and  the  Western 
Associated  Press  came  back  into  the  fold.  With  a  develop- 
ment of  new  telegraph  companies,  and  with  the  foundation  of 
new  newspapers  unable  to  secure  the  news  service  of  the  Asso- 
ciated Press,  came  a  more  formidable  competitor  known  as 
the  United  Press.  Competition  between  these  two  organizations 
became  extremely  keen  until  an  agreement  was  reached  by 
which  they  worked  in  harmony  and  refrained  from  competing 
with  one  another  in  gathering  and  distributing  the  news.  In 
1892  the  Western  Associated  Press  again  withdrew  from  the 
organization  with  headquarters  at  New  York  and  the  New  York 
Associated  Press  was  absorbed  by  the  United  Press.  In  the 
period  of  rivalry  which  followed,  both  associations  had  the  co- 
operation of  the  Reuter  News  Agency  of  Europe.  In  their  serv- 
ices they  divided  the  United  States  along  geographical  lines. 
The  United  Press  furnished  news  to  practically  all  of  the  lead- 
ing daily  papers  east  of  the  Alleghany  Mountains,  the  newspapers 
of  the  South,  and  a  few  newspapers  in  the  West.  But  in  the  sec- 
tion last  mentioned  the  Western  Associated  Press  supplied  most 
of  the  newspapers.  Later,  the  Western  Associated  Press  suc- 
ceeded in  obtaining  the  exclusive  use  of  the  news  gathered  by 
the  Reuter  Association  and  the  United  Press  was  put  under  a 
severe  handicap  in  the  gathering  of  European  news :  so  much  so 
that  several  of  the  New  York,  Philadelphia,  and  certain  New 
England  newspapers  left  the  United  Press  to  join  the  Western 
Associated  Press.  The  depletion  was  so  great  that  on  April  8, 
1897,  the  United  Press  was  forced  to  discontinue  its  services  and 
between  two  hundred  and  three  hundred  of  its  members  joined 
the  Western  Associated  Press.  Other  members  formed  a  bureau, 
headed  by  The  New  York  Sun,  which  practically  supplanted  the 
old  United  Press.  The  Western  Associated  Press  was  incorpo- 
rated under  the  laws  of  Illinois  and  had  its  headquarters  at 
Chicago.  Its  general  manager  was  Melville  E.  Stone.  In  1900 


386       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

the  present  Associated  Press  was  organized  out  of  the  old  West- 
ern Associated  Press. 

AMERICAN   NEWSPAPER   PUBLISHERS*   ASSOCIATION 

That  the  period  was  one  in  which  the  emphasis,  on  the  whole, 
was  placed  upon  the  marketing  of  news,  was  shown  by  the  forma- 
tion of  the  American  Newspaper  Publishers'  Association,  which, 
after  preliminary  steps  had  been  taken  at  Detroit,  Michigan, 
on  November  17,  1886,  was  organized  at  Rochester,  New  York, 
February  16,  1887,  to  provide  a  clearing-house  for  the  business 
departments  of  its  members  and  to  protect  them  in  case  of  labor 
difficulties.  From  the  start,  it  devoted  most  of  its  attention  to 
a  study  of  paper  conditions,  a  supervision  of  advertising  agencies 
in  an  attempt  to  weed  out  the  undesirable,  a  campaign  against 
the  imposition  of  press  agents  who  tried  to  secure  the  insertion 
of  advertising  as  pure  reading  matter,  etc.  The  association  came 
to  be  a  great  force  in  American  journalism,  as  its  membership 
included  the  most  influential  newspapers  in  the  country.  The 
need  of  such  an  organization  early  became  patent  when  legis- 
lators at  Washington  began  to  take  steps  looking  toward  the 
regulation  of  the  press. 

PRINTING-PRESSES  OF  PERIOD 

The  two  decades  from  1880  to  1900  saw  the  printing-press  of 
the  newspaper  develop  into  the  greatest  mechanical  achieve- 
ment of  the  human  mind.  Hoe  had  produced  a  press  which  would 
print  on  both  sides  of  a  continuous  roll  of  paper,  but  there  were 
several  minor  difficulties  to  overcome.  Among  these  were  the 
unequal  distribution  of  ink  and  a  frequent  tearing  of  the  paper 
web.  Hoe  took  these  matters  up  with  the  leading  manufacturers 
and  insisted  that  the  ink-makers  produce  a  product  which  would 
spread  evenly  from  the  ink  fountain  of  his  press;  he  next  turned 
his  attention  to  the  paper  manufacturers  and  demanded  that 
they  produce  a  paper  of  even  thickness  and  uniform  quality, 
while  he  in  turn  experimented  with  presses  where  the  paper 
pressure  would  be  uniform.  Other  inventors  perfected  the  me- 
chanical arrangement  of  the  press  by  means  of  adjustments  too 
complicated  to  describe  in  a  book  of  this  character.  Tucker  and 


PERIOD   OF  FINANCIAL  READJUSTMENT    387 

Campbell  produced  the  rotary  folder  which  made  possible  the 
great  speed  in  creasing  the  web  sheets  transversely.  The  latter 
also  gave  the  stationary  longitudinal  folder  and  perfected  the 
rotary  delivery  of  the  printed  sheets.  Another  inventor  added 
the  sheet-turning  bar  by  which  two  parts  of  different  webs 
were  brought  together.  Later,  Hoe  produced  the  mechanical 
marvel  which  gathered  together  several  streams  of  paper  and 
united  them  into  one  printed  product.  Mergenthaler  so  improved 
his  linotype  that  newspaper  publishers  were  forced  by  the  saving 
in  cost  of  composition  to  adopt  his  machine.  Then  came  a  new 
process  of  stereotyping,  known  as  the  "autoplate,"  which  trans- 
formed the  old  and  laborious  hand  process  into  automatic  opera- 
tions. The  introduction  of  the  autoplate  closed  the  period. 


CHAPTER  XIX 

PERIOD  OF  SOCIAL  READJUSTMENT 
1900— 

WITH  what  is  said  to  be  characteristic  candor,  Henry  Watter- 
son,  the  veteran  editor  of  The  Louisville  Courier- Journal,  thus 
summed  up  the  conditions  obtaining  at  the  opening  of  the 
Period  of  Social  Readjustment:  — 

Journalism  is  without  any  code  of  ethics  or  system  of  self-restraint 
and  self-respect.  It  has  no  sure  standards  of  either  work  or  duty.  Its 
intellectual  landscapes  are  anonymous,  its  moral  destination  confused. 
The  country  doctor,  the  village  lawyer,  knows  his  place  and  keeps  it, 
having  the  consciousness  of  superiority.  The  journalist  has  few,  if  any, 
mental  perspectives  to  fix  his  horizon;  neither  chart  of  precedent  nor 
map  of  discovery  upon  which  his  sailing  lines  and  travel  lines  have  been 
marked. 

NEWSPAPER  ETHICS   CODIFIED 

Practically  every  newspaper  before  1900  had  been,  as  Mr. 
Watterson  asserted,  a  law  unto  itself,  without  standards  of 
either  work  or  duty:  its  code  of  ethics,  not  yet  codified  like  those 
of  medicine  and  of  law,  had  been,  like  its  stylebook,  individualis- 
tic in  character.  The  most  important  change  to  leave  its  mark 
upon  the  journalism  of  the  period  was  not  in  the  gathering  of 
news,  not  in  the  speed  with  which  it  could  be  placed  before  the 
public,  not  in  the  ownership  and  control  of  the  journal  from  the 
individual  to  the  incorporated  company,  but  in  the  ethical  ad- 
vance made  in  all  departments  of  the  newspaper.  New  standards 
of  ethics  were  established,  not  only  for  the  editorial,  but  also  for 
the  advertising  and  circulation  departments.  Yet  the  press  but 
reflected  again  the  trend  of  the  times,  for  it  was  an  era  of  moral 
awakening.  Collier's  Weekly  in  " taking  stock"  asserted:  — 

Fifty  years  from  now,  when  some  writer  brings  Woodrow  Wilson's 
."History  of  the  American  People"  up  to  date,  we  think  he  will  say  that 


PERIOD   OF  SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT        389 

the  ten  years  ending  about  January  1, 1914,  was  the  period  of  the  great- 
est ethical  advance  made  by  this  nation  in  any  decade. 

FEMINIZING  THE   NEWSPAPER 

Another  change  was  what  might  be  called  feminizing  the  news- 
paper. To  a  certain  extent  it  was  doubtless  the  reaction  of  the 
suffrage  movement,  or,  to  be  more  exact,  the  movement  whereby 
women  widened  their  activities,  social,  commercial,  and  politi- 
cal. The  time  came  when  every  page,  possibly  with  the  exception 
of  that  devoted  to  sports,  had  to  be  written  so  that  the  intelli- 
gent woman  could  understand  it.  Even  the  advertising  columns 
were  prepared  to  appeal  to  women  as  merchants  learned  that  the 
housewife  made  the  purchases  for  the  home.  Dorothy  Dix  in  a 
journalism  lecture  at  New  York  University  emphasized  this 
point  when  she  said :  — 

Women  spend  the  money  of  the  world.  Except  for  his  vices  and  his 
outside  clothes,  the  average  man  does  not  handle  a  penny  of  the  money 
he  earns.  His  wife  spends  it.  She  buys  the  groceries,  the  furniture,  the 
piano,  the  jewelry,  —  everything  that  is  advertised  in  the  newspapers, 
and  the  advertisers,  of  course,  support  the  paper.  Therefore,  surprising 
as  it  may  seem  to  the  uninitiated,  it  is  the  women  readers  and  not  the 
men  who  are  considered  first  in  the  make-up  of  a  paper. 

GOVERNMENT  REGULATIONS 

The  period  also  saw  numerous  regulations  of  the  press  by  both 
state  and  national  legislation.  While  most  of  the  bills  presented, 
and  a  great  majority  of  those  passed  by  legislators,  related  to 
advertising,  some  were  aimed  at  the  reportorial  and  editorial 
columns,  especially  in  handling  the  news  about  crime  and  in  the 
attacks  on  personal  character.  More  drastic  libel  laws  were 
passed  by  numerous  States.  In  several  instances,  the  qourts  held 
that  newspapers,  in  printing  privileged  matter  such  as  the  re- 
ports of  divorce  and  criminal  cases,  must  not  overemphasize 
such  accounts  either  by  sensational  headlines  or  by  emphasis  upon 
sordid  details  in  order  to  increase  street  sales,  and  construed  such 
action  as  constructive  malice.  Most  of  the  regulations,  however, 
affecting  the  newspapers  came  from  the  Postal  Department. 

These  three  changes  were  so  closely  interwoven,  both  objec- 
tively and  subjectively,  that  it  is  almost  impossible  to  separate 


390       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

them.  Every  one,  however,  was  so  important  that  each  deserves 
discussion  somewhat  more  in  detail. 

ADVERTISING  ETHICS  ADVANCED 

The  first  advertising  advance  was  made  when  the  immoral 
personal  advertisement  was  thrown  into  the  hellbox  —  the 
technical  name  in  the  newspaper  office  for  the  receptacle  in  which 
rubbish  and  other  waste  matter  is  deposited.  Previously  such 
advertisements  formed  practically  a  directory  of  the  houses  of 
ill-fame  to  be  found  in  the  red-lighted~streets  of  the  city  tender- 
loin. In  1907  the  United  States  District  Attorney  forced  one 
newspaper  to  pay  a  fine  of  about  $30,000  for  publishing  such 
obscene  matter  in  its  advertising  columns  devoted  to  "per- 
sonals." The  Daily  News  and  The  Tribune,  of  Chicago,  were 
among  the  leaders  to  exclude  such  advertising,  which  in  that  city 
had  been  so  cunningly  designed  that  it  deceived  many  readers  as 
to  its  true  character.  The  stylebook  of  several  newspapers  now 
contains  paragraphs  about  classified  advertisements  which  are 
based  upon  regulations  adopted  by  The  Chicago  Daily  News  and 
which  specify  kinds  of  advertising  which  under  no  condition  may 
be  accepted  for  publication  and  about  others  which  must  be 
rejected  unless  O.K.  'd  by  a  responsible  member  of  the  adver- 
tising staff  who  has  made  a  personal  investigation  of  the  ad- 
vertiser. Another  ethical  advance  was  the  exclusion  from  the 
newspapers  of  what  The  Journal,  of  Minneapolis,  called  "the 
filthy,  dangerous,  fraudulent  medicinal,  and  near-medicinal 
advertising."  A  few  newspapers  have  gone  so  far  as  to  exclude 
all  medicinal  advertising.  Others,  like  The  North  American,  of 
Philadelphia,  accept  no  medicinal  advertising  which  would 
promote  a  drug-forming  habit,  or  which  guarantees  to  cure  an 
incurable  disease,  such  as  cancer,  etc.  Many  conflicting  opinions 
exist  about  the  advertising  of  patent  medicines.  The  code  of 
ethics  of  the  better  newspapers  on  this  point  suggests  that  the 
newspaper  may  insert  the  advertising  of  any  patent  medicine 
which  the  publisher  of  the  paper  is  willing  to  use  in  his  own 
home.  The  suggestion  of  medical  societies,  that  the  press  should 
exclude  all  patent  medicine  advertising,  is  not  well  accepted. 
A  newspaper  is  inclined  to  believe  that  physicians  are  not  en- 


PERIOD  OF  SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT        391 

tirely  unselfish  in  such  a  desire  and  suggests  that  the  doctor  pay 
more  attention  to  the  ethics  of  his  own  profession  and  less  to  that 
of  the  press.  The  manufacturers  of  medicines  of  merit  maintain 
that  it  is  just  as  honorable  to  advertise  a  product  which  will  re- 
lieve a  stomach  of  an  ache  as  it  is  to  advertise  a  mincemeat  that 
puts  an  ache  in  the  stomach :  that  it  is  as  ethical  to  describe  the 
merits  of  a  corn  plaster  to  take  corns  away  as  it  is  to  sell  shoes 
which  make  corns.  Whatever  opinion  may  be  held  about  these 
matters  there  can  be  no  question  that  the  American  newspaper 
is  no  longer  a  directory  of  patent  medicine  manufacturers  of 
products  of  no  merit. 

APPLICATION   OF  GRESHAM'S  LAW 

While  it  took  newspaper  publishers  some  time  to  learn  that 
Gresham's  law,  of  the  good  driving  out  the  bad,  applied  as  well 
to  advertising  as  to  money,  they  had  no  difficulty  to  read  the 
handwriting  when  it  appeared  on  the  walls  of  the  counting- 
room.  Especially  was  this  true  of  financial  advertising.  The 
advertisement  of  the  swindler  was  weighed  in  the  balance  and 
found  wanting  and  the  press  refused  to  be  a  partner  in  selling  a 
hole  in  the  ground  for  a  gold  mine  or  a  swamp-lake  for  real  estate. 
The  modern  code  of  ethics  demands  that  any  financial  advertis- 
ing which  promises  an  unusually  high  rate  of  interest  should  be 
carefully  investigated  before  appearing  in  print.  It  also  de- 
mands the  exclusion  of  the  announcement  of  that  advertiser  who, 
dealing  previously  in  gilt-edged  securities,  " changes  his  line" 
and  seeks  to  insert  the  announcement  of  "gold  brick  mining 
schemes. "  The  Tribune,  of  Chicago,  once  set  a  very  good  prec- 
edent: it  received  by  telegraph  an  order  for  the  insertion  of  a 
page  advertisement  which  in  flamboyant  words  predicted  im- 
mediate wealth  through  the  purchase  of  stocks  advertised,  but 
instead  of  publishing  the  advertisement,  The  Tribune  gave  a 
whole  page  with  something  like  the  following  printed  in  the 
center,  "  Mr.  Blank  telegraphed  last  night  that  he  wished  a  page 
in  The  Tribune  in  which  to  print  an  advertisement  of  the  So- 
and-So  mines.  The  Tribune  is  through  with  Mr.  Blank.  It  will 
print  no  more  of  his  advertising  and  takes  this  method  of  an- 
nouncing its  position  to  its  readers." 


392       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

The  ethical  advance  extended  to  other  advertising  columns. 
The  copy  for  fire  and  bankruptcy  sales  were  among  those  to  be 
revised.  Even  department  stores  were  urged  to  do  away  with 
the  evils  of  comparative  prices.  At  about  the  time  the  editorial 
columns  were  conducting  a  national  campaign  of  "Swat  the 
Fly! "  advertising  clubs  all  over  the  country  were  demanding  that 
the  newspapers  "Swat  the  Lie!"  whenever  it  occurred  in  any 
form  of  advertisement.  A  few  newspapers  positively  guaranteed 
the  reliability  of  assertions  in  the  advertising  columns.  The 
Tribune,  of  New  York,  went  so  far  as  to  offer  to  refund  to  its 
readers  in  case  of  dissatisfaction  whatever  had  been  paid  for 
purchase  of  products  advertised  in  its  columns.  It  did  so  whether 
the  purchase  was  of  a  pair  of  stockings  or  of  an  automobile.  The 
amount  that  it  had  to  refund,  however,  was  very  small  when 
compared  with  the  total  amount  of  purchases  made. 

DEPARTMENTS  FOE  THE  HOUSEHOLD 

Whether  the  efforts  on  the  part  of  newspapers  to  reach  women 
readers  were  due  to  commercial  reasons  or  to  a  sincere  desire  to 
be  of  social  service,  may  be  a  debatable  question  about  which  to 
make  a  specific  generalization.  The  Tribune,  of  Chicago,  ac- 
cepted the  view  that  the  modern  newspaper  "must  not  only  help 
in  the  fight  for  a  clean  city,  but  must  aid  the  clergy  and  others 
to  fight  for  a  clean  home,  and  in  entering  the  everyday  life  of  its 
readers,  it  must,  like  the  parish  priest,  be  guide,  counselor,  and 
friend."  It  was  while  speaking  on  this  point  that  the  general 
manager  of  The  Tribune  said:  " I  have  often  thought  that  a  news- 
paper can  most  closely  realize  its  real  mission  the  nearer  it  comes 
to  attaining  the  ideals  of  the  parish  priest  and  the  clergyman  in 
his  ministrations  to  his  flock.  And  the  newspaper's  flock  is  often 
numbered  in  the  hundreds  of  thousands." 

Academic  and  pedantic  critics  have  made  no  end  of  fun  of 
newspaper  departments  conducted  under  such  headlines  as 
"Advice  to  the  Lovelorn"  or  "First  Aid  to  Wounded  Hearts." 
Positive  proof  exists,  however,  that  such  departments  conducted 
by  Dorothy  Dix,  Laura  Jean  Libbey,  etc.,  in  spite  of  protests 
over  the  modern  desecration  and  decadence  of  the  American 
newspaper,  have  played  no  mean  part  in  the  social  service  of  the* 


PERIOD  OF  SOCIAL  READJUSTMENT        393 

press.  James  Keeley,  when  general  manager  of  The  Tribune,  of 
Chicago,  left  this  testimonial  to  the  value  of  such  depart- 
ments:— 

In  a  little  over  two  years  Miss  Libbey  has  received  fifty  thousand 
letters  asking  advice,  and  if  you  could  have  read  the  letters,  as  I  did, 
not  all,  but  hundreds,  you  would  have  felt  as  I  did,  that  she  was,  to  use 
that  trite  saying,  "filling  a  long-felt  want."  They  were  from  lonely  hu- 
man beings  with  human  problems.  Over  two  hundred  girls  and  young 
women  have  written  and  acknowledged  that  her  words  of  warning  saved 
them  from  taking  the  irretrievable  false  step  which  often  confronts  the 
friendless  girl  in  a  large  city.  Almost  as  many  have  testified  that  she 
has  prevented  the  wrecking  of  homes  in  a  divorce  court.  Several  hun- 
dreds of  her  readers  have  written  her  that  she  saved  them  from  the  folly 
of  an  elopement  which  would  have  been  accursed.  Other  hundreds  have 
written  that  she  straightened  out  the  kinks  in  their  affairs,  and  sent 
wedding  invitations  or  announcements  with  thanks  to  her  that  they  are 
established  happily.  Probably  the  most  interesting  thing  revealed  in 
Miss  Libbey 's  journalistic  career  is  that  it  has  brought  to  light  so  many 
persons  hopping  heedlessly  in  the  direction  of  a  bad  finish,  when  a  sharp 
word  from  a  woman  professionally  engaged  in  giving  advice  would 
bring  them  to  then-  senses. 

Of  the  department,  "  Marion  Harland's  Helping  Hand,"  Mr. 
Keeley  said:  — 

It  is  a  department  through  which  a  great  exchange  is  conducted 
reaching  from  coast  to  coast.  Actually  hundreds  of  old  trusses,  abdom- 
inal belts,  invalid  chairs,  and  crutches,  as  well  as  other  articles  dis- 
carded by  those  who  no  longer  need  them,  have  been  sent  to  those  who 
do,  and  not  only  have  a  dozen  encyclopa3dias  been  given  to  those  who 
need  them,  but  half  a  dozen  typewriters  and  one  piano  have  found 
places  where  they  would  be  of  real  value.  Over  a  dozen  orphans  have 
found  homes  through  her  efforts.  Mrs.  Harland  has  three  secretaries, 
and  together  they  sort  the  applications  from  those  who  want  and  the 
offers  from  those  who  have  and  use  their  best  efforts  that  the  helping 
hand  shall  be  extended  to  those  deserving.  Queer  work,  the  old-tune 
editor  would  think.  But  it  is  real  work. 

SOCIAL  SERVICE  WORK 

The  social  service  work  of  The  Tribune,  of  Chicago,  has  been 
selected  for  illustration  chiefly  because  that  newspaper  was  a 
pioneer  in  the  field  and  blazed  a  trail  along  which  many  other 
papers  followed.  An  examination  of  the  dailies  in  the  larger 


394       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

cities,  especially  of  the  evening  papers,  will  show  that  almost 
every  edition  has  numerous  departments  which  aim  to  make 
bad  homes  good  and  good  homes  better.  There  can  be  no  ques- 
tion that  the  introduction  of  such  features  has  made  the  news- 
papers better  advertising  mediums  and  doubtless  numerous 
newspapers  adopted  them  for  that  reason.  The  late  Mayor 
Gaynor,  of  New  York,  knew  whereof  he  spoke  when  he  said  to  a 
gathering  of  Gotham  newspaper  men,  "A  paper  going  into  the 
home  is  worth  a  hundred  littering  the  streets  or  clogging  the 
sewers  of  the  city."  Advertisers  also  know  this  fact.  In  addi- 
tion, a  newspaper  which  goes  into  the  home  must  have  the  ethics 
of  a  gentleman  or  the  good  American  housewife  puts  the  sheet 
into  the  kitchen  range. 

POSTAL  REGULATIONS 

When  the  Postal  Department  first  began  to  enforce  the  sec- 
tions of  the  Revised  Statutes  which  forbid  the  delivery  of  mail 
and  the  payment  of  money  orders  to  concerns  which  advertise 
fraudulent  schemes  to  obtain  money  under  false  pretenses  and 
promises,  there  was  a  distinct  lack  of  cooperation  in  work  on  the 
part  of  many  newspapers.  The  reason  was  undoubtedly  the 
enormous  amount  such  concerns  paid  for  newspaper  advertising 
—  which  was  often  their  greatest  item  of  expense.  In  comment- 
ing on  this  fact  an  official  report  of  the  Solicitor  of  the  Postal 
Department  asserted:  — 

In  one  case  the  evidence  showed  that  several  hundred  thousand  dol- 
lars had  been  paid  for  advertising  during  a  period  of  eighteen  months, 
as  high  as  fifty  thousand  dollars  having  been  paid  in  a  single  month; 
and  it  was  developed  in  a  number  of  cases  that  fabulous  amounts  have 
been  spent  for  this  purpose.  It  will  be  readily  seen,  therefore,  that  the 
financial  interests  of  some  publications  will  be  seriously  affected  by  the 
loss  of  this  class  of  advertising  if  the  loss  is  not  made  up  in  another  way, 
and  it  is  not  expected  that  hearty  cooperation  can  be  enlisted  at  once 
from  all  publishers. 

This  lack  of  cooperation  was  shown  in  the  suppressioii  of  news 
relating  to  the  issuance  of  fraud  orders  by  the  Postal  Depart- 
ment. On  this  point  the  report  to  which  reference  has  just  been 
made  said :  — 


PERIOD   OF   SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT         395 

The  reasons  assigned  for  this  course  by  some  of  such  newspapers  is 
that  they  fear  libel  suits;  but  it  is  difficult  to  understand  wherein  the 
liability  for  the  publication  of  such  news  differs  from  the  liability,  if  any, 
for  the  publication  of  the  action  of  public  officers  in  other  classes  of 
cases  or  of  court  proceedings,  which  are  generally  published  and  fre- 
quently command  front-page  space.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  a  number  of 
newspapers  do  give  the  greatest  publicity  to  these  fraud  orders,  and  I 
have  yet  to  hear  of  any  civil  or  criminal  action  being  attempted  against 
them  for  the  publication  of  such  news. 

Yet  such  conditions  did  not  obtain  long,  for  the  ethics  of  news- 
paper-making demanded  a  new  standard.  With  the  higher 
standard  and  the  broader  vision  the  old  common-law  doctrine  of 
"let  the  buyer  beware"  (caveat  emptor)  was  discarded  by  many 
of  the  better  newspapers.  A  report  of  the  Solicitor  to  the  Postal 
Department  recorded  the  movement  to  free  newspapers  from 
fraudulent  advertising  as  follows:  — 

Another  and  very  striking  effect  of  the  policy  of  this  administration 
with  respect  to  fraudulent  operations  through  the  mails  is  that  the  lead- 
ing organizations  of  advertising  men  and  newspaper  proprietors  through- 
out the  country  have  inaugurated  and  are  now  actively  carrying  out 
plans  to  "clean  up"  all  false  and  fraudulent  advertising.  It  is  strongly 
urged  by  those  behind  this  movement  that  the  public  will  have  more 
faith  in  advertising  matter  generally  and  that  it  will  patronize  the  ad- 
vertising columns  to  a  greater  extent  when  advertisements  are  uniformly 
honest,  and  that  the  standing  of  the  newspapers  themselves  will  soon  be 
rated  by  the  character  of  the  advertisements  they  carry.  Many  news- 
papers now  make  it  a  rule  to  accept  none  but  absolutely  clean  and  true 
advertisements,  and  some  papers  even  go  so  far  as  to  guarantee  the 
truth  of  the  representations  contained  in  their  advertisements  and  to 
offer  to  reimburse  any  one  defrauded  by  having  placed  reliance  upon 
them. 

COOPERATION    OF  NEWSPAPERS 

Then  came  the  cooperation  recorded  a  year  later  (1916) :  — 

The  movement  for  truthful  advertising  among  publishers  of  news- 
papers and  advertising  clubs  and  associations,  to  which  reference  was 
made  in  my  last  annual  report,  has  continued  with  undiminished  vigor. 
This  office  has  lent  every  proper  assistance  to  the  movement  by  keep- 
ing in  touch  with  its  leaders,  supplying  them  with  information  with  ref- 
erence to  fraud  orders  and  acting  upon  complaints  filed  by  them.  The 
movement  has  been  encouraged  from  its  inception  by  this  office  in  the 


396       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

realization  that  practically  every  fraudulent  scheme  depends  upon  false 
advertisements  and  that  the  withdrawal  of  such  means  of  reaching  the 
public  would  greatly  handicap  their  operation.  This  campaign  for  truth- 
ful advertising  is  resulting  in  a  great  change  in  the  nature  of  advertise- 
ments carried  by  many  newspapers  and  in  the  conservative  tone  which 
is  becoming  more  and  more  a  characteristic  of  the  advertising  of  legiti- 
mate business.  Its  effect  is  also  to  be  seen  in  the  fraudulent  advertising 
laws  which  have  recently  been  passed  by  many  State  legislatures  and 
by  Congress  in  legislating  for  the  District  of  Columbia.  It  may  be  stated 
in  this  connection  that  widespread  public  interest  has  been  aroused  in 
this  fraud-order  work  which  has  formed  a  subject  for  numerous  syndi- 
cated articles  of  a  highly  commendatory  character  published  through- 
out the  country,  as  well  as  many  favorable  editorials,  some  by  the  lead- 
ing daily  metropolitan  papers  of  all  shades  of  political  opinion.  There 
have  been  no  adverse  newspaper  comments  so  far  as  I  have  observed. 

For  the  passage  of  the  honest  advertising  laws  mentioned  in 
the  paragraph  just  quoted  especial  credit  should  be  given  to 
Printer's  Ink,  a  weekly  journal  published  in  the  interest  of  ad- 
vertising, and  to  the  Associated  Advertising  Clubs  of  the  World. 

STATEMENT   OF   OWNERSHIP  AND   CIRCULATION 

By  an  act  of  August  24,  1912,  it  was  provided:  — 

It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  editor,  publisher,  business  manager,  or 
owner  of  every  newspaper,  magazine,  periodical,  or  other  publication  to 
file  with  the  Postmaster-General  and  the  postmaster  at  the  office  at 
which  said  publication  is  entered,  not  later  than  the  first  day  of  April 
and  the  first  day  of  October  of  each  year,  on  blanks  furnished  by  the 
Post-Office  Department,  a  sworn  statement  setting  forth  the  names  and 
post-office  addresses  of  the  editor  and  managing  editor,  publisher,  busi- 
ness managers,  and  owners,  and,  in  addition,  the  stockholders,  if  the 
publication  be  owned  by  a  corporation;  and  also  the  names  of  known 
bondholders,  mortgagees,  or  other  security-holders;  and  also,  in  the 
case  of  daily  newspapers,  there  shall  be  included  in  such  statement  the 
average  of  the  number  of  copies  of  each  issue  of  such  publication  sold  or 
distributed  to  paid  subscribers  during  the  preceding  six  months.  Any 
such  publication  shall  be  denied  the  privileges  of  the  mail  if  it  shall  fail 
to  comply  with  the  provisions  of  this  paragraph  within  ten  days  after 
notice  by  registered  letter  of  such  failure. 

This  regulation  was  somewhat  bitterly  attacked  on  the  part 
of  both  rural  and  metropolitan  journalism.  There  appeared 
shortly  after  it  went  into  effect  numerous  editorials  similar 


PERIOD  OF   SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT        397 

in  vein  to  the  following  quoted  from  The  Record,  of  Bushnell, 
Illinois :  — 

Uncle  Samuel  is  keeping  a  fatherly  and  watchful  eye  on  the  news- 
paper boys.  Just  why  the  old  gentleman  has  any  more  right  to  poke  his 
venerable  nose  into  the  private  affairs  of  a  man  who  runs  a  newspaper 
than  he  has  to  interfere  with  a  grocer,  a  butcher,  a  dry-goods  man,  or  a 
manufacturer  has  not  yet  been  explained.  As  will  be  noted  by  the 
statement  published  this  week,  a  paternal  government  has  been  given 
some  weighty  and  important  information  about  The  Record  —  and  it  is 
hoped  the  country  has  thereby  been  saved. 

While  Uncle  Sam  is  prying  into  private  affairs  that  are  none  of  his 
business,  perhaps  it  might  be  in  order  to  inform  him  that  The  Record 
man  is  a  brunette  and  a  Republican;  he  has  a  pretty  bad  corn  on  his  left 
foot  and  his  hair  shows  signs  of  falling  out;  he  has  only  one  good  eye 
and  walks  a  little  splay-footed;  he  has  a  wife,  a  daughter,  a  couple  of 
grandchildren,  an  alleged  automobile,  a  horse,  a  Jersey  calf,  and  a  peg- 
legged  cat.  He  thought  he  was  running  for  the  Legislature  last  fall,  but 
he  found  out  he  was  n't  even  walking.  He  hopes  to  be  able  to  keep  on 
making  an  honest  living  without  having  to  stop  every  little  while  and 
answer  impertinent  questions,  as  he  is  neither  a  criminal  nor  a  dependent. 

Metropolitan  papers  questioned  the  legality  of  the  act  and 
took  the  matter  to  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States.  The 
latter  declared  that  no  act  had  been  enacted  to  abridge  the  free- 
dom of  the  press,  as  newspapers  might  still  continue  to  print 
editions  if  so  desired,  and  were  simply  deprived  of  the  use  of  the 
mails  for  distribution  of  copies  if  they  did  not  obey  the  regula- 
tion. Later  publishers  came  to  accept  the  regulation  as  guaran- 
teeing " full-weight"  circulation  just  as  the  Government  had  in- 
sisted upon  "  full-weight"  packages. 

LABEL  FOR  ADVERTISEMENTS 

Another  act  of  August  24,  1912,  was  still  more  revolutionary, 
for  it  provided :  — 

All  editorial  or  other  reading  matter  published  in  any  such  news- 
paper, magazine,  or  periodical  for  the  publication  of  which  money  or 
other  valuable  consideration  is  paid,  accepted,  or  promised  shall  be 
plainly  marked  "advertisement."  Any  editor  or  publisher  printing 
editorial  or  other  reading  matter  for  which  compensation  is  paid,  ac- 
cepted, or  promised,  without  so  marking  the  same,  shall,  upon  convic- 
tion in  any  court  having  jurisdiction,  be  fined  not  less  than  fifty  dollars 
($50)  nor  more  than  five  hundred  dollars  ($500). 


398       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

This  second  regulation  was  also  assailed  on  the  ground  that 
if  the  letter  of  the  law  was  enforced  book  reviews  and  dramatic 
criticisms  would  have  to  bear  an  advertising  label.  The  Evening 
Post,  of  New  York,  was  somewhat  facetious  in  its  comment:  — 

When  book  reviews  and  dramatic  criticisms  are  duly  labeled  "Ad- 
vertisement," as  the  Post-Office  authorities  would  have  it,  H.  Sillings- 
bee  Jones,  author  of  the  original  novel,  "  Heartache,"  may  find  notices 
of  the  following  nature  in  his  weekly  envelope  from  the  clipping  bu- 
reau: — 

"  Heartache"  is  a  fairly  appropriate  title  for  this  latest  story  from 
the  pen  of  Mr.  H.  Sillingsbee  Jones,  but  " Headache"  would  have 
been  better.  There  may  have  been  a  reason  why  this  book  should 
have  been  inflicted  on  a  long-suffering  public,  but  the  reason,  like 
the  author's  grammar,  is  not  obvious.  If  the  possession  of  nothing 
to  say,  and  an  utter  inability  to  say  it,  constitute  a  call  to  author- 
ship, then  Mr.  Jones  is  divinely  inspired.  There  may  be  worse 
books  than  this  in  print,  but  we  do  not  know  where  they  are  to  be 
found.  In  all  seriousness,  why  should  labor  and  money  be  wasted  on 
stuff  like  this?  Advertisement. 

Such  a  postal  regulation,  however,  did  much  to  help  codify  the 
code  of  ethics  for  newspapers,  —  a  code  which,  at  the  beginning 
of  the  period,  was  without  form,  —  and  imposed  by  law  a  self- 
restraint  and  self-respect  upon  newspapers  outside  the  straight 
and  narrow  way.  No  attempt  has  been  made  to  make  it  apply 
either  to  literary  or  to  dramatic  criticism. 

"DRY"  JOURNALISM 

The  Prohibition  movement  found  a  prompt  reaction  in  the 
press.  As  time  went  on,  one  newspaper  after  another  began  to 
exclude  advertisements  of  spirituous  liquors.  As  one  section 
after  another  became  dry,  numerous  complaints  were  made  that 
distillers  and  brewers  were  using  the  columns  of  the  newspapers 
to  market  liquors  in  sections  where  their  sale  was  prohibited  by 
law.  Protests  were  so  numerous  that  Congress  passed  a  law  — 
approved  March  3,  1917,  and  effective  July  1,  1917  —  which, 
according  to  Liquor  Bulletin  No.  1,  issued  by  the  Postal  Depart- 
ment and  mailed  to  publishers  and  news  agents,  provided :  — 

No  letter,  postal  card,  circular,  newspaper,  pamphlet,  or  publication 
of  any  kind  containing  any  advertisement  of  spirituous,  vinous,  malted, 


PERIOD   OF  SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT        399 

fermented,  or  other  intoxicating  liquors  of  any  kind,  or  containing  a 
solicitation  of  an  order  or  orders  for  said  liquors,  or  any  of  them,  shall 
be  deposited  in  or  carried  by  the  mails  of  the  United  States,  or  be  de- 
livered by  any  postmaster  or  letter-carrier,  when  addressed  or  directed 
to  any  person,  firm,  corporation,  or  association,  or  other  addressee,  at 
any  place  or  point  in  any  State  or  Territory  of  the  United  States  at 
which  it  is,  by  the  law  in  force  in  the  State  or  Territory  at  that  time, 
unlawful  to  advertise  or  solicit  orders  for  such  liquors,  or  any  of  them, 
respectively. 

If  the  publisher  of  any  newspaper  or  other  publication  or  the  agent  of 
such  publisher,  or  if  any  dealer  in  such  liquors  or  his  agent,  shall  know- 
ingly deposit  or  cause  to  be  deposited,  or  shall  knowingly  send  or  cause 
to  be  sent,  anything  to  be  conveyed  or  delivered  by  mail  in  violation  of 
the  provisions  of  this  section,  or  shall  knowingly  deliver  or  cause  to  be 
delivered  by  mail  anything  herein  forbidden  to  be  carried  by  mail,  shall 
be  fined  not  more  than  one  thousand  dollars  or  imprisoned  not  more  than 
six  months,  or  both;  and  for  any  subsequent  offense  shall  be  imprisoned 
not  more  than  one  year.  Any  person  violating  any  provision  of  this 
section  may  be  tried  and  punished,  either  in  the  district  in  which  the 
unlawful  matter  or  publication  was  mailed  or  to  which  it  was  carried 
by  mail  for  delivery,  according  to  direction  thereon,  or  in  which  it 
was  caused  to  be  delivered  by  mail  to  the  person  to  whom  it  was 
addressed. 

Before  the  passage  of  the  national  legislation,  regulation  in 
some  of  the  States  had  been  very  strict  about  the  insertion  of 
advertisements  of  liquors.  In  Texas,  for  example,  there  appeared 
under  every  advertisement  of  whiskey,  beer,  wine,  etc.,  a  notice 
to  the  effect:  "No  orders  solicited  in,  rilled  in,  or  shipped  into 
prohibited  territory  in  violation  of  the  Texas  laws."  In  "wet" 
territory,  the  exclusion  of  liquor  advertising  by  newspapers  was 
usually  due  to  agitation  started  by  women  who  somehow  knew 
how  to  establish  a  boycott  without  breaking  the  state  law.  Other 
papers  voluntarily  excluded  liquor  advertising  because  they 
thought  that  newer  standards  demanded  that  the  paper  going 
into  the  home  should  be  without  the  odor,  or,  to  be  more  exact, 
the  suggestion,  of  the  alcoholic  beverage.  Unquestionably  the 
decision  of  magazine  publishers,  who  were  the  first  to  exclude 
liquor  advertising,  had  much  to  do  with  the  policies  adopted  by 
the  newspapers.  The  change  in  editorial  attitude  of  magazines 
and  newspapers  on  the  temperance  question  was  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  total  reversions  of  policy  in  journalism  history. 


400       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

INFLUENCE   OF   CIVIC   SOCIETIES 

That  the  period  was  one  devoted  to  social  readjustment  may 
be  seen  by  the  attention  which  civic  leagues  paid  to  local  news- 
papers. From  these  leagues  came  a  constant  demand  for  im- 
provement in  the  advertising  and  news  columns.  In  Denver,  for 
example,  was  organized  the  Citizens'  Protective  League  with 
purposes  thus  outlined  by  one  of  the  Colorado  papers  published 
outside  that  city:  — 

One  hundred  leading  citizens  of  Denver  have  organized  the  Citizens' 
Protective  League,  which  has  for  its  only  purpose  the  squelching  of  the 
knocking  and  blackmailing  newspaper.  The  most  remarkable  feature 
of  this  action  is  the  length  of  time  it  required  to  awaken  Denver's  sub- 
stantial citizenry  to  a  realization  that  the  newspaper  condition  was  the 
heaviest  millstone  that  beautiful  but  benighted  city  has  been  carrying 
for  a  dozen  years. 

It  is  common  knowledge  that  certain  newspapers  there  have  had  the 
business  men  of  Denver  —  and  there  is  no  more  abject  coward  on  earth 
than  the  average  business  man  —  at  their  mercy  through  fear  of  at- 
tack, and  even  blackmail.  This  situation  is  incomprehensible  when  one 
stops  to  think  that  a  combined  stand  against  any  newspaper  by  its 
patrons  could  put  it  out  of  business  in  six  months. 

Citizens  of  Denver,  you  have  it  in  your  power  to  make  good  Indians 
of  the  Denver  newspapers,  and  if  it  is  necessary  to  adopt  the  measures 
used  to  make  good  Indians  of  the  aborigines,  you  are  justified  in  the 
light  of  past  experience.  There  is  no  newspaper  published  in  Denver 
that  is  so  absolutely  necessary  to  your  existence  that  you  must  stand  for 
everything.  And  an  occasional  penance  is  not  enough.  Make  them  be- 
have, as  decent  citizens  are  expected  to  do,  all  the  time. 

The  press  and  the  people  of  the  interior  are  with  you. 

The  official  platform  of  the  Citizens'  Protective  League  was 
thus  stated  in  advertisements  published  in  Denver  news- 
papers :  — 

1.  That  no  news  story,  editorial,  or  advertisement   be   published 
which  is  unfit  for  a  fifteen-year-old  boy  or  girl  to  read. 

2.  That  fake  stories,  misrepresentations,  and  exaggerations  of  all 
kinds  be  eliminated. 

3.  That  stories  of  divorce,  murder,  suicide,  and  other  forms  of  crime 
and  immorality  be  kept  in  the  background. 

4.  That  the  petty  quarrels  and  constant  warfare  between  the  news- 
papers be  permanently  discontinued. 


PERIOD  OF  SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT        401 

5.  That  stories  which,  though  having  some  basis  of  fact,  might  be 
hurtful  to  Colorado  or  to  any  city  in  Colorado,  should  not  be  exploited 
in  a  sensational  manner. 

6.  That  malicious  or  unwarranted  statements  injurious  to  Colorado, 
or  to  any  city  or  citizen  of  Colorado,  or  to  any  legitimate  industry  of 
Colorado  be  barred  from  publication. 

Similar  organizations  in  other  cities  did  much  to  help  codify 
that  code  of  ethics  the  absence  of  which  Henry  Watterson  so 
much  regretted. 

FOR  ACCURACY  AND  FAIR  PLAY 

In  1908  William  Bayard  Hale  sold  to  The  Century  Magazine, 
of  New  York,  an  article  which  contained  an  interview  with  the 
German  Kaiser.  After  the  article  had  been  put  into  type  and  was 
actually  on  the  press,  the  German  Foreign  Office  requested  its 
suppression  —  a  request  which  the  publishers  of  The  Century 
granted,  even  though  the  act  necessitated  a  stopping  of  the 
presses  and  the  substitution  of  another  article  and  a  delay  in  the 
publication  of  the  number.  When  the  news  of  its  suppression 
leaked  out,  the  public  became  very  much  interested  in  the  sup- 
pression and  was  unusually  anxious  to  know  what  the  Kaiser 
had  said.  The  World,  of  New  York,  gave  a  wild  guess  which  it 
published  on  November  21, 1908.  Immediately  upon  the  appear- 
ance of  what  purported  to  be  a  synopsis  of  The  Century  article, 
Mr.  Hale  gave  to  the  press  the  following  statement :  — 

I  repudiate  absolutely  the  story  which  The  New  York  World  this  morn- 
ing published  purporting  to  tell  what  passed  at  my  audience  with  the 
German  Emperor.  It  is  pure  falsification  from  beginning  to  end  and  I 
so  declared  to  The  World  reporter  who  showed  it  to  me  before  publica- 
tion. 

The  World  was  then  forced  to  admit  that  it  had  imposed  upon 
its  readers  in  the  publication  of  the  article.  The  reaction  which 
followed  undoubtedly  had  something  to  do  with  the  establish- 
ment by  The  World  of  its  Bureau  of  Accuracy  and  Fair  Play,  the 
object  of  which  was  thus  stated  by  Ralph  Pulitzer,  who  suc- 
ceeded his  father  on  The  World  :  — 

To  promote  accuracy  and  fair  play,  to  correct  carelessness,  and  to 
stamp  out  fakes  and  fakers. 


402       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Isaac  Deforest  White,  head  of  the  Legal  Department  of  The 
World,  was  placed  in  charge  of  the  Bureau.  He  then  sent  to  the 
various  correspondents  of  The  World  the  following  declaration 
of  policy :  — 

The  World  aims  to  be  accurate.  It  aims  to  be  fair  and  just  to  every 
person  who  reads  it  and  to  every  person  whose  name  it  prints. 

Accuracy  and  fair  play  are  inseparable  in  journalism.  Inaccuracy 
often  means  injury  to  innocent  persons.  A  newspaper's  influence  is 
measured  by  the  number  of  people  who  read  it  AND  BELIEVE  IN  IT. 

The  words  "accuracy  and  fair  play"  sum  up  the  law  of  libel.  If  what 
is  published  is  true  and  fair,  the  writer  need  not  worry  about  the  libel 
law,  civil  or  criminal.  t 

All  complaints  about  inaccuracy  of  news  items  or  about  un- 
just treatment  of  persons  mentioned  in  the  columns  are  promptly 
turned  over  to  this  Bureau,  which  makes  a  careful  investigation 
to  determine  whether  there  is  any  foundation  for  the  complaint, 
and  if  so,  where  the  responsibility  lies.  During  the  first  year  of 
its  establishment,  two  hundred  and  sixty-two  complaints  were 
sustained  and  one  hundred  and  sixty-four  corrections  were  pub- 
lished in  the  newspaper. 

A  more  liberal  policy  in  the  matter  of  making  corrections  or 
offering  apologies,  adopted  by  newspapers  all  over  the  country, 
marked  the  passing  of  the  so-called  infallibility  of  the  press. 
Even  such  a  conscientious  editor  as  Samuel  Bowles,  of  The 
Republican,  of  Springfield,  Massachusetts,  always  hesitated  to 
make  corrections  in  his  paper.  The  story  is  told  that  a  man 
whose  death  had  been  recorded  in  The  Republican  appeared  be- 
fore the  editor  and  demanded  a  correction.  Upon  being  told  the 
policy  of  the  paper,  he  exclaimed,  "But  I  am  not  dead,  as  you 
can  see."  To  this  the  editor  replied,  "  We  cannot  print  a  correc- 
tion, but  as  your  case  demands  some  attention,  we  will  bring  you 
back  to  life  by  putting  your  name  in  the  birth  column."  Whether 
this  story  be  fact  or  fiction,  it  recorded  an  attitude  taken  by 
many  newspaper  publishers  before  the  Period  of  Social  Readjust- 
ment. 

Not  only  did  many  papers  establish  complaint  departments, 
but  a  number  adopted  the  policy  of  submitting,  before  publica- 
tion, any  item  reflecting  on  a  man's  character  to  the  man  him- 


PERIOD   OF  SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT        403 

self,  that  false  or  incorrect  statements  might  be  corrected.  It  is 
but  justice  to  The  Evening  Post,  of  New  York,  to  say  that  that 
paper  was  among  the  first  thus  to  safeguard  the  accuracy  of  its 
news  of  this  character.  With  the  movement  "Safety  First!" 
in  railroading  came  that  of  "Accuracy  First!"  in  newspaper- 
making. 

DANGERS  OF  UNLICENSED  JOURNALISM 

With  the  "purified  publicity"  there  came  occasionally  a  dis- 
cussion of  the  advisability  of  licensing  newspaper  men.  Atten- 
tion was  called  to  the  fact  that  before  a  man  could  practice  at 
the  bar,  enter  the  pulpit,  teach  in  the  schools,  run  an  automobile, 
etc.,  he  must  take  out  a  license  to  demonstrate  his  ability  and 
proficiency,  but  that  any  one  might  start  a  newspaper  —  if  pos- 
sessed of  the  necessary  capital.  Lieutenant-Governor  Barratt 
O'Hara  introduced  into  the  Illinois  Legislature  a  bill  which  pro- 
vided for  the  licensing  of  journalists.  Though  it  failed  to  pass  and 
become  a  law,  its  introduction  drew  forth  much  comment  in  the 
press.  The  ablest  presentation,  however,  of  the  dangers  of  a  free 
press  and  unlicensed  printing  came,  not  from  the  pen  of  an  Amer- 
ican, but  from  that  of  the  Russian  publicist,  Pobiedenostseff:  — 

Any  vagabond  babbler  or  unacknowledged  genius,  any  enterprising 
tradesman,  with  his  own  money,  or  with  the  money  of  others,  may 
found  a  newspaper,  even  a  great  newspaper.  He  may  attract  a  host  of 
writers  and  feuilletonists,  ready  to  deliver  judgment  on  any  subject 
at  a  moment's  notice;  he  may  hire  illiterate  reporters  to  keep  him  sup- 
plied with  rumors  and  scandals.  His  staff  is  then  complete.  From  that 
day  he  sits  in  judgment  on  all  the  world,  on  ministers  and  administra- 
tors, on  literature  and  art,  on  finance  and  industry.  It  is  true  that  the 
new  journal  becomes  a  power  only  when  it  is  sold  on  the  market  —  that 
is,  when  it  circulates  among  the  public.  For  this  talent  is  needed  and 
the  matter  published  must  be  attractive  and  congenial  for  the  readers. 
Here,  we  might  think,  was  some  guarantee  of  the  moral  value  of  the 
undertaking  —  men  of  talent  will  not  serve  a  feeble  or  contemptible 
editor  or  publisher;  the  public  will  not  support  a  newspaper  which  is 
not  a  faithful  echo  of  public  opinion. 

This  guarantee  is  fictitious.  Experience  proves  that  money  will  at- 
tract talent  under  any  conditions,  and  that  talent  is  ready  to  write  as 
its  paymaster  requires.  Experience  proves  that  the  most  contemptible 
persons  —  retired  money-lenders,  Jewish  factors,  news-venders,  and 
bankrupt  gamblers  —  may  found  newspapers,  secure  the  services  of 


404       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

talented  writers  and  place  their  editions  on  the  market  as  organs  of  pub- 
lic opinion.  The  healthy  taste  of  the  public  is  not  to  be  relied  upon. 
The  great  mass  of  readers,  idlers  for  the  most  part,  is  ruled  less  by  a 
few  healthy  instincts  than  by  a  base  and  despicable  hankering  for  idle 
amusement,  and  the  support  of  the  people  may  be  secured  by  any  editor 
who  provides  for  the  satisfaction  of  these  hankerings,  for  the  love  of 
scandal,  and  for  intellectual  pruriency  of  the  basest  kind.  Of  this  we 
meet  with  evidence  daily;  even  in  our  capital  no  search  is  necessary 
to  find  it;  it  is  enough  to  note  the  supply  and  demand  of  the  news- 
venders'  shops  and  at  the  railway  stations. 

Such  a  paper  may  flourish,  attain  consideration  as  an  organ  of  public 
opinion,  and  be  immensely  remunerative  to  its  owners,  while  no  paper 
conducted  upon  firm  moral  principles  or  founded  to  meet  the  healthier 
instincts  of  the  people  could  compete  with  it  for  a  moment. 

The  full  text  of  this  criticism  of  journalism  by  Pobiedenostseff 
will  be  found  in  the  appendix  of  Albert  J.  Beveridge's  book 
entitled  "  Russian  Advance." 


RURAL  JOURNALISM 

\Preceding  chapters  have  recorded  the  relationship  which 
Horace  Greeley,  of  The  New  York  Tribune,  bore  to  his  daily  con- 
temporaries. Yet  Greeley  exerted  such  a  tremendous  influence 
over  the  country  weekly  that  it  still  bears  his  imprint.  The  latch- 
string  of  his  editorial  sanctum  in  New  York  was  ever  out  for  the 
country  editor  who  cared  to  call,  no  matter  whether  he  wanted 
to  talk  about  the  present  coming  presidential  election  or  to  dis- 
cuss the  squash  or  pumpkin  crop  in  his  own  county;  for  Greeley 
was  always  prepared  to  give  advice  on  either  topic.  Of  all  the 
New  York  editors  of  his  time,  Greeley  was  the  most  willing  to 
send  his  paper  to,  or  to  exchange  with,  country  publishers,  and 
no  matter  how  busy  he  might  be  he  always  found  time  to  give 
advice  about  country  weeklies.  One  such  letter,  which  was  ex- 
tensively published,  so  influenced  the  making  of  the  country 
weekly  that  it  ought,  in  spite  of  its  length,  to  be  reproduced  in 
this  chapter.  On  April  3,  1860,  Greeley  penned  the  following 
letter:  — 

FRIEND  FLETCHER:  —  I  have  a  line  from  you,  informing  me  that  you 
are  about  to  start  a  paper  at  Sparta,  and  hinting  that  a  line  from  me 
for  its  first  issue  would  be  acceptable.  Allow  me,  then,  as  one  who  spent 


PERIOD  OF  SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT        405 

his  most  hopeful  and  observant  years  in  a  country  printing-office,  and 
who  sincerely  believes  that  the  art  of  conducting  country  (or  city) 
newspapers  has  not  yet  obtained  its  ultimate  perfection,  to  set  before 
you  a  few  hints  on  making  up  an  interesting  and  popular  gazette  for  a 
rural  district  like  yours. 

I.  Begin  with  a  clear  conception  that  the  subject  of  deepest  interest 
to  an  average  human  being  is  himself;  next  to  that,  he  is  most  concerned 
about  his  neighbors.  Asia  and  the  Tongo  Islands  stand  a  long  way  after 
these  in  his  regard.  It  does  seem  to  me  that  most  country  journals  are 
oblivious  as  to  these  vital  truths.  If  you  will,  so  soon  as  may  be,  secure 
a  wide-awake,  judicious  correspondent  in  each  village  and  township  of 
your  county,  —  some  young  lawyer,  doctor,  clerk  in  a  store,  or  assist- 
ant in  a  post-office,  —  who  will  promptly  send  you  whatever  of  moment 
occurs  in  his  vicinity,  and  will  make  up  at  least  half  your  journal  of 
local  matter  thus  collected,  nobody  in  the  county  can  long  do  without  it. 
Do  not  let  a  new  church  be  organized,  or  new  members  be  added  to  one 
already  existing,  a  farm  be  sold,  a  new  house  be  raised,  a  mill  be  set  in 
motion,  a  store  be  opened,  nor  anything  of  interest  to  a  dozen  families 
occur,  without  having  the  fact  duly  though  briefly  chronicled  in  your 
columns.    If  a  farmer  cuts  a  big  tree,  or  grows  a  mammoth  beet,  or 
harvests  a  bounteous  yield  of  wheat  or  corn,  set  forth  the  fact  as  con- 
cisely and  unexceptionably  as  possible.   In  due  time,  obtain  and  print  a 
brief  historical  and  statistical  account  of  each  township,  —  who  first 
settled  in  it,  who  have  been  its  prominent  citizens,  who  attained  ad- 
vanced years  therein,  &c.  Record  every  birth  as  well  as  every  marriage 
and  death.  In  short,  make  your  paper  a  perfect  mirror  of  everything 
done  in  your  county  that  its  citizens  ought  to  know;  and  whenever  a 
farm  is  sold,  try  to  ascertain  what  it  brought  at  previous  sales,  and 
how  it  has  been  managed  meantime.    One  year  of  this,  faithfully  fol- 
lowed up,  will  fix  the  value  of  each  farm  in  the  county,  and  render  it 
as  easily  determined  as  that  of  a  bushel  of  corn. 

II.  Take  an  earnest  and  active,  if  not  a  leading,  part  in  the  advance- 
ment of  home  industry.    Do  your  utmost  to  promote  not  only  an  an- 
nual county  Fair,  but  town  Fairs  as  well.    Persuade  each  farmer  and 
mechanic  to  send  something  to  such  Fairs,  though  it  be  a  pair  of  well- 
made  shoes  from  the  one  or  a  good  ear  of  corn  from  the  other.   If  any 
one  undertakes  a  new  branch  of  industry  in  the  county,  especially  it  it 
be  a  manufacture,  do  not  wait  to  be  solicited,  but  hasten  to  give  him 
a  helping  hand.  Ask  the  people  to  buy  his  flour,  or  starch,  or  woollens, 
or  boots,  or  whatever  may  be  his  product,  if  it  be  good,  in  preference 
to  any  that  may  be  brought  into  the  county  to  compete  with  him.  En- 
courage and  aid  him  to  the  best  of  your  ability.  By  persevering  in  this 
course  a  few  years,  you  will  largely  increase  the  population  of  your 
county  and  the  value  of  every  acre  of  its  soil. 

III.  Don't  let  the  politicians  and  aspirants  of  the  county  own  you. 
They  may  be  clever  fellows,  as  they  often  are;  but,  if  you  keep  your 


406       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

eyes  open,  you  will  see  something  that  they  seem  blind  to,  and  must 
•peak  out  accordingly.  Do  your  best  to  keep  the  number  of  public 
trusts,  the  amount  of  official  emoluments,  and  the  consequent  rate  of 
taxation  other  than  for  common  schools  as  low  as  may  be.  Remem- 
ber that  —  in  addition  to  the  radical  righteousness  of  the  thing  —  the 
tax-payers  take  many  more  papers  than  the  tax-consumers. 

I  would  like  to  say  more,  but  am  busied  excessively.  That  you  may 
deserve  and  achieve  success  is  the  earnest  prayer  of 

Yours  truly, 

HORACE  GREELEY. 

In  view  of  Greeley 's  prominence  in  the  journalism  world, 
this  letter  was  taken  as  a  guidebook  by  the  country  publisher, 
who  ever  since  has  tried  to  follow  all  the  advice  given  save  that 
mentioned  in  the  last  paragraph.  For  some  reason,  the  country 
weekly  could  not  break  away  from  partisan  bias  —  something 
that  Greeley  himself  was  unable  to  do.  The  party  "pap "  which 
politicians  handed  out  to  local  papers  undoubtedly  had  some- 
thing to  do  with  this  allegiance  of  party  and  country  press. 
The  printing  of  the  session  laws  of  the  State,  the  insertion  of 
announcements  about  sales  by  the  sheriff,  the  publishing  of  the 
calendar  of  the  county  court,  etc.,  were  too  profitable  to  the 
country  publisher  to  make  him  independent  of  party  allegiance. 
In  addition,  the  printing  of  the  campaign  literature  always  went 
to  a  party  publisher  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  independent 
printer  would  do  the  job  cheaper.  Only  in  recent  years  has  the 
country  publisher  learned  that  "the  taxpayers  take  more 
papers  than  the  tax  consumers/'  and  the  lesson  has  not  been  very 
well  learned  yet,  as  any  newspaper  directory  will  show. 

Country  weeklies  of  which  there  are  now  more  than  twenty 
thousand,  have  on  the  whole  been  closer  to  readers  than  the 
daily  papers.  The  suggestion  given  by  Greeley  and  followed  by 
rural  editors  partly  explains  the  fact,  for  the  weekly  became 
the  printed  diary  of  the  home  town.  No  finer  tribute  has  been 
paid  to  rural  journalism  than  that  which  came  from  the  pen  of 
William  Allen  White,  editor  of  The  Gazette,  of  Emporia,  Kan- 
sas:— 

Our  papers,  our  little  country  papers,  seem  drab  and  miserably  pro- 
vincial to  strangers;  yet  we  who  read  them  read  in  their  lines  the  sweet, 
intimate  story  of  life.  And  all  these  touches  of  nature  make  us  won- 


PERIOD  OF  SOCIAL  READJUSTMENT        407 

drous  kind.  It  is  the  country  newspaper,  bringing  together  daily  the 
threads  of  the  town's  lif  e,  weaving  them  into  something  rich  and  strange, 
and  setting  the  pattern  as  it  weaves,  directing  the  loom,  and  giving  the 
cloth  its  color  by  mixing  the  lives  of  all  the  people  in  its  color-pot  —  it 
is  this  country  newspaper  that  reveals  us  to  ourselves,  that  keeps  our 
country  hearts  quick  and  our  country  minds  open  and  our  country 
ifaith  strong. 

The  country  press  has  not  been  without  its  influence.  The 
Independent  of  New  York  City  once  offered  a  prize  for  the  most 
meritorious  essay  describing  "The  Best  Thing  in  Our  Town."  It 
was  awarded  to  a  preacher  in  a  Missouri  town  who  told  about 
the  local  weekly  of  his  parish.  The  country  weekly  often  is  just 
that  —  the  best  thing  in  our  town. 

FAMOUS  LIBEL  SUIT 

A  libel  suit  brought  by  the  United  States  Government  against 
The  World  of  New  York  and  against  The  News  of  Indianapolis 
attracted  much  attention.  On  December  15,  1908,  President 
Roosevelt  sent  to  Congress  a  special  message  upon  the  purchase 
of  the  Panama  Canal  Right  for  forty  million  dollars  in  which 
he  asserted  that  the  Government  authorities  should  bring  suit 
for  libel  for  the  intimation  that  the  money  was  not  paid  to  the 
French  Government,  but  to  an  American  syndicate,  which  had 
purchased  the  effects  of  the  Panama  Canal  Company.  Presi- 
dent Taft,  who  went  into  office  on  March  4,  1909,  kept  aloof 
from  the  matter,  but  the  Government  continued  its  prosecu- 
tion of  the  two  papers  on  the  grounds  that  it  was  their  purpose 
to  "stir  up  disorder  among  the  people."  The  charge  against 
The  World  was  that  it  circulated  twenty-nine  copies  contain- 
ing the  item  "within  the  fort  and  military  reservation  of  West 
Point."  The  World  fought  the  suit  on  technical  grounds,  for 
reasons  best  known  to  itself,  and  resisted  the  pretense  of  the 
Federal  authorities  that  they  had  a  coordinate  jurisdiction 
with  the  State  authorities  in  prosecuting  libel.  No  action  was 
taken  by  the  Government  to  bring  the  suit  to  the  District  of 
Columbia.  The  matter  came  up  for  trial  in  the  United  States 
Circuit  Court  of  New  York  City  on  July  25, 1910,  and  the  Court 
ordered  that  a  judgment  be  entered  quashing  the  indictment 


408       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

because  it  was  not  authorized  by  the  statute  upon  which  it 
rested.  The  World  then  urged  that  the  matter  be  taken  to  the 
Supreme  Court,  which  the  Department  of  Justice  did  on  Janu- 
ary 3,  1911.  Judge  Hough  handed  down  an  opinion  in  which 
he  quashed  the  indictment  on  the  ground  that  the  Federal  Gov- 
ernment had  no  jurisdiction.  On  January  4,  1911,  The  World 
thus  summed  up  the  results:  — 

The  unanimous  decision  handed  down  by  the  United  States  Su- 
preme Court  yesterday  in  the  Roosevelt-Panama  libel  case  against 
The  World  is  the  most  sweeping  victory  won  for  freedom  of  speech  and 
of  the  press  in  this  country  since  the  American  people  destroyed  the 
Federalist  Party  more  than  a  century  ago  for  enacting  the  infamous 
Sedition  Law. 

EXPERIMENTS  IN  JOURNALISM 

The  Period  of  Social  Readjustment  saw  many  experiments  in 
journalism.  When  the  United  States  undertook  to  dig  a  canal 
across  the  Isthmus  of  Panama,  it  later  found  itself  also  engaged 
in  quite  a  different  thing  —  that  of  publishing  a  newspaper. 
Employees  who  worked  on  "the  big  olitch"  had  to  have  news 
printed  in  English.  There  was  nothing  else  for  the  Government 
.to  do  but  to  establish  The  Canal  Record.  This  paper,  practically 
a  country  weekly  for  the  Isthmus,  was  a  letter  from  home  and 
a  diary  of  local  events.  It  was  distributed  without  charge  to  all 
the  Government  employees  engaged  in  any  sort  of  work  on  the 
Canal.  Other  new  ventures  in  the  field  of  journalism  are  out- 
lined somewhat  more  in  detail  in  the  paragraphs  which  follow. 

THE  ADLESS  DAILY  PAPER 

The  endowed  newspaper  and  the  "adless"  newspaper  have  fre- 
quently been  the  subject  of  academic  discussion.  No  attempt 
has  been  made  to  establish  the  former  and  but  one  of  the  latter. 
On  September  28, 1911,  The  Day  Book,  an  adless  daily  newspaper, 
appeared  in  Chicago.  Several  issues  were  published  before  it  was 
placed  on  sale  and  the  circulation  was  kept  to  two  hundred  di- 
vided between  two  routes  of  one  hundred  each.  With  the  car- 
rier on  Saturday  went  a  personal  representative  of  the  paper  to 
talk  with  the  subscribers.  Its  object  was  to  secure  all  its  rev- 


PERIOD   OF  SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT        409 

enue  from  its  readers  in  order  that  the  paper  might  be  under 
no  obligation  to  anybody  save  to  them.  In  December,  1912, 
The  Day  Book  was  gradually  put  on  the  newsstands  with  a  cor- 
responding increase  in  circulation  which  was  as  follows:  1912, 
3446;  1913,  7886;  1914,  15,762;  1915,  19,562;  for  the  six  months 
ending  September  30,  1916,  20,742.  The  daily  average  for  Oc- 
tober of  that  year  was  22,938,  but  when  on  November  20  the 
retail  price  was  raised  from  one  to  two  cents  there  was  a  falling- 
off  in  circulation.  At  the  higher  rate  The  Day  Book  might  pos- 
sibly have  been  successful  had  there  not  been  the  very  rapid  in- 
crease in  the  cost  of  white  paper  due  to  the  Great  European  War. 
With  the  increased  cost  of  production,  the  paper,  however,  was 
forced  either  to  raise  its  rates  again  or  to  suspend  publication. 
The  latter  course  was  adopted.  The  Day  Book  did  not  prove  very 
popular  with  the  women,  chiefly  because  it  did  not  advertise  the 
bargains  of  the  department  stores.  How  necessary  store  news  is 
to  the  modern  newspaper,  Samuel  Hopkins  Adams  has  outlined 
in  his  novel,  "The  Clarion."  The  only  substitute  for  such  store 
advertising  seems  to  be  to  hire  a  special  reporter  to  report  the 
news  of  shopping  centers.  The  adless  newspaper  may  possi- 
bly be  a  part  of  the  journalism  of  to-morrow,  if  fifty  thousand 
people  will  be  willing  to  pay  ten  cents  per  copy  for  their  daily 
paper  and  will  agree  not  to  cancel  their  subscription  orders  even 
though  displeased  with  the  presentation  of  the  news  or  offended 
at  the  editorial  policy  adopted  by  the  editors. 

THE   ENDOWED   NEWSPAPER 

The  endowed  newspaper  has  often  been  advocated.  Hamilton 
Holt,  editor  of  The  Independent,  of  New  York  City,  once  out- 
lined, before  a  National  Newspaper  Conference  held  under  the 
auspices  of  the  University  of  Wisconsin  at  Madison,  Wisconsin, 
somewhat  in  detail  just  how  an  endowed  newspaper  should  be 
conducted. 

However  ideal  the  endowed  newspaper  may  be  in  theory, 
practical  newspaper  men  like  Don  C.  Seitz,  business  manager  of 
The  New  York  World,  and  James  Keeley,  editor  and  publisher  of 
The  Chicago  Herald,  do  not  think  the  scheme  practical.  Mr. 
Keeley  once  expressed  himself  as  follows :  — 


410       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

An  ideal  paper,  broadly  speaking,  is  impractical.  The  people  can  en- 
dow a  newspaper.  No  one  else  can.  There  are  too  many  men  of  many 
minds  in  this  as  in  every  other  land  to  make  an  ideal  paper  possible. 
Oatmeal  may  be  the  ideal  breakfast  food  from  a  dietetic  point  of  view, 
but  it  never  has  been  universally  adopted  and  never  will  be  until  all 
palates  are  set  in  the  same  gustatory  key.  So  what  might  be  the  ideal 
mental  oatmeal  to  some  would  prove  caviar  to  the  general  multitude. 
Even  class  and  technical  papers,  which  one  would  think  should  speak 
with  unanimity  and  authority,  do  not  long  remain  as  oracles  in  sole 
possession  of  their  fields.  Opposition  develops  and  competitors  appear 
expressing  divergent  views.  One  man's  physical  food  is  another  man's 
poison,  and  until  all  think  alike  the  ideal  paper  cannot  come  into  being. 
And  may  it  never  come,  for  when  all  men  think  alike  the  spice  of  life 
will  be  gone,  initiative  will  be  smothered,  and  the  world  will  be  reduced 
to  a  dull  level  of  mediocrity. 

The  nearest  that  the  endowed  newspaper  has  come  to  a  reali- 
zation in  America  was  the  partial  promise  of  Andrew  Carnegie  to 
be  one  of  ten  men  to  finance  such  a  venture.  It  would  take  just 
about  ten  men  of  Mr.  Carnegie's  wealth  to  establish  successfully 
an  endowed  daily  newspaper. 


THE  MUNICIPAL  NEWSPAPER 

The  most  pretentious  attempt  to  publish  a  municipal  news- 
paper was  tried  in  Los  Angeles,  California,  in  1912,  when  The 
Municipal  News  was  started  to  publish  the  facts  concerning  the 
city's  business  and  to  give  fully  and  accurately  the  arguments  of 
contending  sides.  It  was  published  weekly  and  circulated  sixty 
thousand  copies  which  were  distributed  by  newsboys  every 
Wednesday  afternoon  absolutely  free  throughout  the  residence 
sections  of  the  city.  One  copy  was  left  at  every  house  regardless 
of  whether  the  resident  desired  the  paper  or  not.  The  paper  was 
under  the  control  of  the  Municipal  Newspaper  Commission, 
composed  of  three  citizens  who  served  without  pay,  and  who  were 
appointed  by  the  mayor  subject  to  confirmation  by  the  city  coun- 
cil. Each  commissioner  held  office  for  four  years,  subject  to 
recall  by  the  voters  at  any  time  and  to  removal  at  any  time  by  the 
mayor,  subject  to  the  referendum.  Special  columns  were  set  aside 
solely  for  the  use  of  political  parties  which  furnished  the  items 
for  insertion.  Financial  support  came  from  two  sources;  first, 


PERIOD  OF  SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT        dll 

there  was  the  appropriation  of  $36,000  set  aside  by  the  city  of 
Los  Angeles ;  second,  there  was  the  revenue  derived  from  adver- 
tising, for  which  the  rates  were  one  dollar  an  inch  for  one  in- 
sertion. In  addition  to  the  municipal  news,  there  was  a  page 
intended  primarily  to  interest  pupils  attending  city  schools. 
The  weekly  expenses  for  publishing  The  News  amounted  to 
a  little  over  a  thousand  dollars  a  week.  The  remarkable  fact 
about  The  Municipal  News  was  that  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  it 
went  into  the  home  with  its  free  distribution,  it  carried  no  de- 
partment store  advertising,  except  for  four  weeks  when  one  pro- 
prietor, against  the  wish  of  his  advertising  manager,  announced 
the  special  bargains  offered  at  his  store.  A  referendum  vote,  a 
vote  by  which  the  paper  was  established,  later  ordered  the  dis- 
continuance of  the  sheet,  chiefly  on  account  of  the  financial 
cost. 

The  Municipal  News  did  not  compete  with  the  daily  papers  of 
Los  Angeles,  California,  because  it  printed  no  telegraphic  in- 
telligence. It  was  restricted  by  the  ordinance  which  created  the 
paper  from  printing  any  editorial  opinion  or  argument  about  a 
religious  question  or  any  political  question  which  pertained  to 
National  or  State  politics.  A  political  party  polling  three  per 
cent  of  the  vote  of  Los  Angeles  had  the  right  without  charge  to 
one  column  each  issue  in  which  it  might  set  forth  its  views  on 
public  questions.  The  local  committee  of  each  party  selected  its 
own  editor  to  edit  its  own  column,  which  was  free  from  censor- 
ship by  the  editor  of  the  paper  on  the  condition  that  matter  sub- 
mitted must  be  lawful  for  publication.  The  mayor  or  any  mem- 
ber of  the  city  council  could  have  half  a  column  in  any  issue  of 
the  paper. 

In  discussing  the  possibilities  of  a  daily  newspaper  publicly 
owrcd,  George  H.  Dunlop,  manager  of  The  Municipal  Newsf 
once  expressed  his  views  as  follows :  — 

The  publicly  owned  daily  newspaper,  covering  the  entire  field  of 
journalism,  must  be  a  very  high  grade  paper  if  it  is  to  be  of  value.  Its 
news  must  be  accurate,  its  arguments  fair,  and  its  style  interesting.  It 
must  not  present  the  weaknesses  of  mankind  as  worthy,  nor  the  vices 
of  mankind  as  amusing,  nor  the  virtues  of  mankind  as  stupid.  It  must 
not  rely  on  scandal  and  vice,  the  improprieties  of  the  stage  and  pictures 
of  perfect  women,  as  the  means  for  interesting  its  readers.  It  will  not 


412       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

seek  to  ingratiate  itself  with  the  childhood  of  the  community  with  comic 
pictures  whose  humor  is  in  inverse  proportion  to  their  general  "smart- 
aleckness"  and  downright  depravity.  Above  all,  it  must  not  preach 
the  gospel  of  hate  and  try  to  make  each  half  of  the  community  believe 
the  other  half  is  the  bitter  foe  of  all  progress  and  of  their  fellow-men.  No 
one  can  say  when  we  shall  see  a  publicly  owned  daily  newspaper  of 
this  kind,  but  I  venture  to  say  that  the  necessity  for  such  a  publicly 
owned  newspaper  lies  in  the  very  nature  of  things,  and  that  in  the  in- 
evitable course  of  events,  it  is  on  its  way.  The  day  is  coming  when  it 
will  arrive. 

" TRADING   STAMPS   GIVEN" 

In  December,  1904,  an  interesting  journalism  experiment  was 
started  in  Detroit,  Michigan.  S.  P.  Hutchinson,  who  had  already 
attracted  notice  through  trading  stamps  which  bore  his  name, 
along  with  that  of  his  partner,  conceived  the  idea  that  a  news- 
paper which  gave  premiums  for  coupons  cut  out  of  the  sheet  would 
be  very  successful.  Accordingly  he  had  special  presses  constructed 
which  could  print  in  the  upper  right-hand  corner  of  each  news- 
paper a  little  tri-cornered  red  coupon  and  started  The  United 
States  Daily.  These  little  coupons  could  be  exchanged  for  pre- 
miums which  ranged  all  the  way  from  oak  rockers  and  marble 
clocks  to  bicycles  and  automobiles.  In  charge  of  The  United 
States  Daily  was  the  well-known  journalist,  Willis  J.  Abbot,  who 
had  been  chairman  of  the  National  Democratic  Press  Bureau. 
He  secured  many  of  the  features  which  had  proved  successful 
in  New  York  in  attracting  circulation.  In  addition,  he  sur- 
rounded himself  with  an  exceptionally  able  editorial  and  art 
staff  and  produced  a  paper  which  would  seemingly  compare  very 
favorably  with  the  popular  newspapers  of  the  Atlantic  Coast. 
But  the  venture  did  not  prove  successful ;  even  the  coupons  failed 
to  bring  a  circulation,  and  after  a  spectacular  career  of  sixty- 
eight  days  The  United  States  Daily  was  interred  in  the  journal- 
ism graveyard  at  Detroit  on  February  22,  1905.  Brief  as  was  it 
career,  it  aroused  the  bitter  opposition  of  the  other  newspapers  in 
Detroit,  especially  that  of  The  Journal,  The  Free  Press,  and  The 
News,  and  it  failed  to  secure  the  cooperation  of  local  department 
stores  which  had  previously  taken  kindly  to  the  trading  stamp 
idea. 


E 


PERIOD   OF  SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT        413 

NEW  TESTAMENT  JOURNALISM 

Shortly  before  the  period  opened,  the  Reverend  Charles  Sheldon 
had  published  a  book  which  had  a  nation-wide  sale  under  the  title 
of  "In  His  Steps,  or  What  Would  Jesus  Do?"  The  suggestion 
was  made  to  The  Daily  Capital,  of  Topeka,  Kansas,  that  it  would 
be  a  good  idea  to  turn  the  paper  over  to  the  Reverend  Dr.  Shel- 
don for  a  week  to  be  conducted  as  he  thought  Jesus  Christ  would 
have  edited  it.  The  offer  when  made  to  Dr.  Sheldon  was  ac- 
cepted and  the  experiment  began  on  March  13,  1900,  and  con- 
tinued for  a  week.  Dr.  Sheldon  had  long  held  the  view  that  the 
daily  newspaper  was  as  much  bound  to  give  readers  the  things 
they  needed  instead  of  what  they  wanted  as  was  the  pulpit  to 
give  what  was  needed  instead  of  what  was  wanted.  He  once  as- 
serted, "I  have  as  much  right  to  go  into  my  pulpit  next  Sunday 
and  preach  to  my  people  the  things  they  want  in  theology  or 
moral  living  as  editors  have  to  print  in  their  papers  anything 
below  the  high  standards  that  govern  human  beings,  for  the 
rules  of  moral  conduct  are  the  same  for  an  editor  as  for  a  minis- 
ter." The  edition  during  the  week  of  Mr.  Sheldon's  editorship  of 
The  Capital,  of  Topeka,  was  sold  on  the  newsstands  all  over  the 
country.  The  immediate  result  was  that  several  editors  offered ,/ 
to  preach  the  Gospel  as  Christ  would  have  preached  it,  if  pulpits 
were  provided.  The  latter  offers,  however,  were  not  accepted 
by  the  clergy.  Fourteen  years  later  a  number  of  distinguished 
Kansan  editors  occupied  pulpits  and  preached  lay  sermons  on 
journalism  the  Sunday  preceding  the  meeting  of  a  National 
Newspaper  Conference  held  under  the  auspices  of  the  University 
of  Kansas,  at  Lawrence,  Kansas.  For  that  conference  Mel- 
ville E.  Stone,  general  manager  of  the  Associated  Press,  pre- 
pared a  lay  sermon,  using  for  his  text,  "For  unto  whomsoever 
much  is  given,  of  him  shall  be  much  required;  and  to  whom  men 
have  committed  much,  of  him  they  will  ask  the  more."  (St.  Luke, 
xii,  48.)  The  conclusion  of  the  sermon  thus  summed  up  the  text, 
as  applied  to  the  Associated  Press :  — 

Obviously  then,  the  very  magnitude  of  the  Associated  Press  work 
tends  to  make  truthfulness  and  impartiality  in  the  service  imperative. 
It  cannot  be  used  for  private  aims,  to  serve  any  special  interest,  or  to 
help  any  political  party  or  faction  or  propaganda.  I  am  not  laying 


414       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

claim  to  any  great  virtue.  I  am  saying  that,  under  its  system  of  opera- 
tion and  in  view  of  the  millions  of  critics  passing  upon  its  work,  the 
Associated  Press  is  automatically  truthful  and  fair.  If  you  hear  a  man 
whining  that  the  Associated  Press  is  run  in  the  interest  of  this  party  or 
that  you  may  put  it  down  that  what  he  wants  is  not  fair  play,  but  a  lean- 
ing his  way.  As  one  evidence  of  the  truthfulness  of  our  reports,  I  direct 
your  attention  to  the  fact  that  during  the  life  of  the  present  organiza- 
tion we  have  never  paid  a  dollar  of  damages  in  an  action  for  libel,  nor 
have  we  compromised  any  case.  Thus  do  we  aim  to  keep  in  mind  our 
obligation,  "Unto  whomsoever  much  is  given,  of  him  shall  be  much  re- 
quired." 

CHEISTIAN   SCIENCE   DAILY  PAPER 

In  spite  of  unsuccessful  attempts  in  Boston,  New  York, 
Philadelphia,  etc.,  to  establish  daily  religious  newspapers,  Mary 
Baker  Eddy,  the  founder  of  Christian  Science,  made  up  her  mind 
that  she  would  start  a  daily  paper  modeled  along  lines  which  had 
been  suggesting  themselves  to  her  for  a  long  time  in  connection 
with  her  work.  Taking  as  her  motto  a  Scriptural  phrase  about 
lifting  up  a  standard  which  should  be  a  light  unto  the  people, 
she  resolved  that  her  newspaper,  instead  of  being  a  mirror  for 
reflecting  destructive  agencies,  should  be  a  journal  to  record 
achievements  in  every  useful  field  of  human  endeavor.  She  ac- 
cordingly started  The  Christian  Science  Monitor  in  Boston,  No- 
vember 25,  1908.  From  the  start  the  paper  was  more  inter- 
national in  scope  than  most  rivals  in  the  secular  field.  Special 
attention  was  paid  to  commercial  conditions  in  foreign  lands  in 
general,  and  in  South  America  in  particular.  Art  and  education 
were  given  prominent  positions  in  the  paper;  its  religious  propa- 
ganda was  limited  to  a  daily  article  on  one  of  the  back  pages. 
From  the  first  issue  the  paper  was  successful,  due  largely  to  the 
wonderful  cooperation  of  the  church  of  which  Mrs.  Eddy  was  the 
visible  head.  It  is  but  justice  to  The  Monitor  to  say  that  no  paper 
has  a  higher  standard  of  ethics.  Its  circulation  has  not  been  con- 
fined by  any  means  to  members  of  the  Christian  Science  Church. 
Even  a  distinguished  Chicago  journalist  once  remarked,  "I 
have  n't  any  more  use  for  Christian  Science  than  Hetty  Green 
had  for  a  poorhouse,  but  I  consider  The  Christian  Science  Mora- 
tor  one  of  the  greatest  dailies  in  America  and  I  read  it  religiously, 
not  for  its  propaganda,  but  for  its  secular  news." 


PERIOD   OF  SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT        415 

ASSOCIATED  PRESS 

On  May  23,  1900,  the  State  of  New  York  issued  a  charter  to  a 
corporation  known  as  the  Associated  Press.  The  new  organiza- 
tion was  virtually  a  continuance  of  the  Western  Associated  Press 
which  had  had  its  headquarters  at  Chicago.  This  change  was 
doubtless  made  because  the  Supreme  Court  of  Illinois,  after  a 
suit  had  been  brought  against  the  Associated  Press  by  The 
Chicago  Inter  ocean  to  secure  the  news  service  of  the  Association, 
had  handed  down  the  following  decision :  — / 

The  Associated  Press  from  the  time  of  its  organization  and  estab- 
lishment in  business  sold  the  news  reports  to  various  newspapers  who 
became  members,  and  the  publication  of  that  news  became  of  vast 
importance  to  the  public  so  that  public  interest  is  attached  to  the  dis- 
semination of  that  news.  The  manner  in  which  that  corporation  has 
used  its  franchise  has  charged  its  business  with  a  public  interest.  It  has 
devoted  its  property  to  a  public  use,  and  has,  in  effect,  granted  to  the 
public  such  an  interest  in  its  use  that  it  must  submit  to  be  controlled 
by  the  public,  for  the  common  good,  to  the  extent  of  the  interest  it  has 
thus  created  in  the  public  in  its  private  property.  The  sole  purpose  for 
which  news  was  gathered  was  that  the  same  should  be  sold,  and  all  news- 
paper publishers  desiring  to  purchase  such  news  for  publication  are  en- 
titled to  purchase  the  same  without  discrimination  against  them.  .  .  . 
The  appellee  corporation  being  engaged  in  a  business  upon  which  a 
public  interest  is  engrafted,  upon  principles  of  justice  it  can  make  no 
distinction  with  respect  to  persons  who  wish  to  purchase  information 

and  news,  for  purposes  of  publication,  which  it  was  created  to  furnish 

The  legal  character  of  the  corporation  and  its  duties  cannot  be  disre- 
garded because  of  any  stipulation  incorporated  in  a  contract  that  it 
should  not  be  liable  to  discharge  a  public  duty.  Its  obligation  to  serve 
the  public  is  not  one  resting  on  contract,  but  grows  out  of  the  fact  that 
it  is  in  the  discharge  of  a  public  duty,  or  a  private  duty  which  has  been 
so  conducted  that  a  public  interest  has  attached  thereto. 

The  position  taken  by  the  Associated  Press  is  that  it  has  no 
monopoly  of  the  news.  Its  general  manager,  Melville  E.  Stone, 
has  explained  the  situation  as  follows :  —  •  { 

The  output  of  the  Associated  Press  is  not  the  news;  it  is  its  own  story 
of  the  news.  There  can  be  no  monopoly  in  news.  At  the  point  of  ori- 
gin, Havana,  the  destruction  of  the  Maine  was  known  by  every  man, 
woman,  and  child.  Any  one  could  have  written  a  story  of  it.  The 
Associated  Press  men  did.  It  was  their  own  story.  Who  shall  say 


416       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

that  they,  or  those  who  employed  them,  were  not  entitled  to  its  exclu- 
sive use?  And  is  this  not  equally  true,  whether  the  employer  be  one 
man,  or  ten  men,  or  nine  hundred  men  acting  in  cooperation? 

Charges  of  unfair  play  have  on  several  occasions  been  brought 
against  the  Associated  Press.  Oswald  Garrison  Villard,  president 
of  The  New  York  Evening  Post,  has  drawn  the  following  con- 
clusion about  these  charges:  — 

I  personally  have  examined  one  mare's  nest  after  another,  only  to  find 
that  each  was  due  to  ignorance  of  the  technique  of  the  profession  or  of 
the  facts.  Most  of  them  would  never  have  been  heard  of  had  the  sus- 
picious ones  gone  to  headquarters  to  inspect  the  records.  It  is  only  hi 
the  tenth  or  one  hundredth  case  that  I  have  found  that  there  was  a 
genuine  error.  And  it  goes  without  saying  that  I  have  yet  to  learn  of  a 
constructive  suggestion  as  to  something  better  to  take  the  place  of  the 
Associated  Press. 

The  Associated  Press  secured  in  1917  a  court  decision  which 
established  the  legality  of  its  claims  to  ownership  of  its  own  story 
of  the  news.  The  comparison  was  made  that  the  product  of  the 
organization  was  like  ore  which  had  been  mined  and  refined.  To 
make  claims  still  stronger  newspapers  which  were  members  of 
the  Associated  Press  posted  a  notice  on  editorial  pages  to  the 
effect:  — 

The  Associated  Press  is  exclusively  entitled  to  the  use  for  republica- 
tion  of  all  news  dispatches  credited  to  it  or  not  otherwise  credited  in 
this  paper  and  also  the  local  news  of  spontaneous  origin  published 
herein.  All  rights  of  republication  of  all  other  matter  herein  are  also 
reserved. 

UNITED   PEESS 

While  the  present  United  Press  was  organized  in  June,  1907, 
it  really  dates  back  to  the  breaking  up  of  the  old  United  Press  in 
1897,  though  between  the  two  organizations  there  is  no  direct 
connection.  At  the  time,  however,  that  the  discontinuance  of 
the  service  of  the  old  United  Press  was  announced,  several  of  its 
members  were  unable  to  join  the  Associated  Press  and  others 
refused  to  do  so.  Among  the  latter  was  E.  W.  Scripps,  one  of 
the  owners  of  the  Scripps-McRae  string  of  newspapers,  pub- 


The  CaU=Chromcle-Examiner 


SAN  FRANCISCO.  THURSDAY.  APRIL  IP.  1904. 


EARTHQUAKE    AND    FIRE: 
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JOINT    ISSUE   OF   SAN   FRANCISCO    MORNING    PAPERS   THE   DAY 
AFTER   THE   EARTHQUAKE 

(Reduced) 


PERIOD  OF  SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT        417 

lished  in  the  Middle  West,  which  had  been  organized  around  a 
nucleus  of  The  Cincinnati  Post,  The  Cleveland  Press,  and  The 
St.  Louis  Chronicle.  Probably  the  reason  that  Scripps  did  not 
care  to  join  the  Associated  Press  was  the  fact  that  he  thought  that 
any  papers  which  his  company  was  planning  to  establish  in 
other  cities  would  be  unable  to  secure  franchises.  So  he  started 
his  own  news-gathering  organization  at  about  the  same  time  that 
the  newspapers  in  the  East,  who  were  not  members  of  the  As- 
sociated Press,  organized  the  Publishers'  Press,  with  headquar- 
ters in  New  York.  The  latter  organization  was  prepared  to  fur- 
nish its  service  to  both  morning  and  evening  papers  while  the 
former  limited  its  field  to  the  evening  dailies.  A  little  later  an- 
other organization  came  into  existence  which  furnished  a  brief 
or  "pony"  report  of  the  news  to  a  string  of  small  dailies  stretch- 
ing from  Chicago  to  San  Francisco.  The  three  organizations 
after  about  ten  years  saw  that  strength  was  in  union  and  organ- 
ized the  present  United  Press  with  John  Vandercock  as  president 
and  general  news  manager.  Upon  his  death,  shortly  after  the 
union,  Roy  Howard  succeeded  him  as  manager.  Whenever  the 
Associated  Press  is  attacked  on  the  ground  of  having  a  monopoly 
of  the  news,  it  points  to  the  claims  of  the  United  Press  to  show 
that  it  has  a  formidable  rival  in  the  field. 

The  United  Press  differs  from  the  Associated  Press  in  that  its 
services  are  available  to  any  newspaper  which  can  pay  the  neces- 
sary charges  for  a  leased  wire,  etc.  There  is  no  "power  of  pro- 
test" such  as  belongs  to  the  Associated  Press. 

PAPERS   OF   SCRIPPS 

E.  W.  Scripps  is  the  Benjamin  Franklin  of  modern  journalism. 
Just  as  Franklin  used  to  furnish  an  apprentice  with  a  printing 
outfit  and  send  him  to  a  newly  settled  section  to  start  a  paper, 
so  Scripps  puts  out  a  bright  young  journalist  and  furnishes  him 
the  funds  with  which  to  establish  under  a  partnership  agreement 
a  new  paper  in  another  field.  There  are  some  thirty-odd  news- 
papers, large  and  small,  in  his  string  of  papers,  the  distinguishing 
characteristic  of  which  is  said  to  be  that  they  address  them- 
selves primarily  to  the  interests  of  the  working  class. 


418       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 


STATISTICAL 

During  the  first  decade  of  the  twentieth  century,  the  number 
of  daily  newspapers  increased  16.8  per  cent:  in  every  geographic 
division  of  the  United  States  there  was  an  increase,  except  in 
New  England,  but  the  greatest  increase  both  relative  and  abso- 
lute was  in  the  Pacific  and  the  West  South  Central  divisions. 
In  every  State  of  New  England  there  was  a  loss  in  the  number  of 
dailies  during  the  first  decade  except  in  Rhode  Island  where 
conditions  remained  stationary. 

According  to  the  same  statistics  gathered  for  the  Thirteenth 
Census  of  the  United  States,  New  York  led  among  the  individual 
States  with  a  total  daily  circulation  of  over  one  fifth  of  that  for 
the  entire  country.  Pennsylvania  came  second  with  a  little  more 
than  one  eighth  and  Illinois  third  with  about  one  tenth.  The 
only  other  States  which  had  over  three  per  cent  of  the  total 
daily  circulation  were  California,  Massachusetts,  Missouri,  and 
Ohio.  New  York  reported  the  largest  absolute  increase  in  cir- 
culation and  Louisiana  the  least;  the  highest  per  cent  of  gain 
was  in  Oklahoma,  and  the  lowest  in  Louisiana. 

By  1909  the  circulation  of  the  evening  dailies  exceeded  that 
of  the  morning  in  eight  of  the  nine  main  geographic  divisions  of 
the  United  States.  The  Mountain  division  was  the  only]one  where 
the  morning  circulation  was  greater  than  the  evening. 

The  total  circulation  of  the  daily  newspapers  in  the  ten  leading 
cities  of  the  United  States  showed  a  decrease  from  50.5  per  cent 
in  1904  to  forty-seven  per  cent  in  1909,  in  comparison  with  that 
for  the  entire  country.  This  fact  proved  that  the  circulation  of 
dailies  published  outside  the  metropolitan  centers  increased  the 
more  rapidly.  In  1909  the  circulation  of  the  daily  papers  of 
New  York  City  was  16.9  per  cent  of  that  of  all  the  dailies  in  the 
country;  in  1904  it  was  18.3  per  cent.  The  census  of  1910  showed 
that  the  preponderance  of  the  evening  circulation  increased  in 
Boston,  Chicago,  Cleveland,  New  York,  and  Philadelphia,  and 
that  the  morning  circulation  increased,  but  in  decreasing  propor- 
tion, in  Baltimore  and  San  Francisco.  In  St.  Louis  the  evening 
papers  had  a  larger  circulation  than  the  morning  in  1909  —  a 
condition  quite  the  reverse  of  that  in  1904;  the  same  condition 
obtained  in  Pittsburgh. 


PERIOD   OF  SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT        419 

In  the  matter  of  Sunday  newspapers  there  was  an  increase  of 
twenty-nine  for  the  five-year  period  1904-09;  though  there  was 
a  decrease  in  number  in  the  West  North  Central  and  the  South 
Atlantic  divisions  there  was  an  increase  in  the  total  circulation 
of  the  Sunday  newspapers  published  therein.  With  the  excep- 
tion of  the  Middle  Atlantic  and  the  East  North  Central  divisions 
there  were  increases  both  in  number  and  in  total  circulation. 
The  aggregate  number  of  copies  reported  for  1909  was  sufficient 
to  furnish  one  copy  for  every  fifth  person  who  was  ten  years  of 
age  or  over,  and  was  able  to  read.  The  growth  in  circulation  of 
the  Sunday  newspaper  in  the  metropolitan  cities  was  checked 
by  the  establishment  of  Sunday  editions  in  smaller  places.  In 
only  two  of  the  ten  leading  cities,  however,  was  there  a  distinct 
loss  in  circulation  on  Sunday  —  Baltimore  and  San  Francisco. 

EFFECTS   OF   EUROPEAN  WAR 

Press  dispatches  told  the  American  reading  public  of  the  ef- 
fect of  the  war  on  European  newspapers.  The  great  struggle  had 
scarcely  begun  when  the  French  papers  began  either  to  suspend 
publication  or  to  reduce  their  size,  and  those  which  continued 
publication  for  the  most  part  confined  themselves  to  a  single 
edition  a  day  and  abolished  all  headline  display.  Americans  who 
subscribe  for  London  dailies  noticed  an  immediate  reduction  in 
size  as  soon  as  war  had  been  declared.  A  cablegram  from  Am- 
sterdam announced  that  over  eight  hundred  and  fifty  German 
newspapers,  according  to  statistics  gathered  by  the  Postal  De- 
partment, had  suspended  the  first  year  of  the  war.  Belgian  jour- 
nalism soon  became  a  thing  of  the  past,  save  that  conducted 
under  German  supervision. 

The  effect  of  the  war  on  American  journalism  has  been  even 
more  pronounced,  though  along  different  lines.  Size  and  circula- 
tion of  papers  in  this  country  were  not  at  first  curtailed,  but  the 
amount  spent  by  the  American  press  to  gather  the  news,  even 
when  all  was  quiet  near  Ypres,  would,  it  is  said  on  good  author- 
ity, have  bankrupted  the  journalism  of  Continental  Europe. 
The  increased  sales  of  both  regular  and  extra  editions  put  addi- 
tional financial  burdens  on  the  leading  dailies.  Those  who  think 
that  the  advertisers  footed  the  bills  could  not  be  more  mistaken 


420       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

in  their  deduction.  While  advertising  rates  were  computed  on 
the  basis  of  circulation,  no  newspaper  could  advance  its  charge 
for  advertisements  on  short  notice,  as  contracts,  often  covering 
a  term  of  months  and  in  some  cases  years,  prevented  a  sudden 
increase  in  rates.  Advertisers,  not  the  newspapers,  profited  by 
the  increased  circulation. 

The  most  immediate  effect  of  the  war  was  noticed  in  the  rapid 
advance  in  cable  tolls,  which,  not  only  the  news-gathering  or- 
ganization, but  also  the  newspapers  themselves,  were  forced  to 
pay  for  the  special  war  dispatches.  So  high  were  these  tolls  that 
newspapers  pooled  their  interests.  In  New  York  City,  for  ex- 
ample, The  World,  The  Times,  and  The  Tribune  used  a  joint 
cable  service  which  reduced  the  tolls  to  one  third  for  each  news- 
paper. As  the  London  newspapers  sold  their  news  service  to  any- 
body, the  three  papers  just  mentioned  had  been  getting  practi- 
cally the  same  special  war  dispatches  at  three  times  the  cost  they 
later  had  to  pay.  In  the  beginning  the  British  censors,  however, 
were  a  source  of  much  annoyance  to  American  newspapers,  for 
every  one  seemed  a  law  unto  himself.  The  proof-sheets  of  The 
London  Daily  Mail,  for  example,  filed  for  transmission  to  Amer- 
ican newspapers,  would  be  blue-penciled  one  way  by  one  censor 
and  another  by  a  second.  Such  irregularities  in  censorship  did 
much  to  promote  the  newspaper  combination  just  mentioned. 

In  spite  of  such  combinations  to  improve  the  service  and  to 
reduce  the  cost  in  cabling,  the  newspapers  found  it  impossible 
to  print  both  the  war  news  and  the  other  routine  news  without 
increasing  the  size  of  the  regular  issues  to  such  an  extent  that 
financial  returns  would  not  pay  for  the  cost  of  production.  Both 
local  and  national  news  was  therefore  reduced  in  quantity.  Such 
reductions  in  the  amount  of  local  news  printed  released  news- 
paper workers  from  many  offices.  The  condition  at  Chicago, 
typical  of  that  in  metropolitan  cities,  was  thus  set  forth  in  The 
Scoop,  the  official  publication  of  the  Chicago  Press  Club:  — 

The  European  War  has  created  a  condition  in  Chicago  which  has 
seriously  affected  the  working  newspapermen  of  the  city.  The  great 
expense  to  which  the  newspapers  are  being  subjected  in  heavy  cable 
tolls,  and  the  largely  increased  circulation  without  an  adequate  en- 
larged advertising  revenue,  have  forced  the  newspapers  to  curtail  costs, 


PERIOD   OF  SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT        421 

and  a  number  of  good  men  find  themselves  without  employment,  with 
winter  staring  them  in  the  face.  Some  of  the  hustlers  are  willing  to  go 
out  and  create  work  for  themselves  in  various  ways.  They  will  require 
printing,  and  may  require  credit  from  printing  firms.  The  Scoop  sug- 
gests to  our  printer  members  that  in  all  such  cases  they  apply  the 
golden  rule  rather  than  the  strict  rule  of  commerce.  Look  up  the  record 
and  personal  standing  of  an  applicant  for  credit,  and  if  he  be  found 
worthy,  extend  a  helping  hand. 

After  the  outbreak  of  the  war  the  evening  papers  assumed  a 
position  never  before  held  in  the  history  of  American  journalism. 
Many  of  the  papers  of  this  class  consisted  in  the  past  of  a  few 
pages  which  closely  resembled  in  contents  a  bulletin  board,  a 
number  of  pages  of  special  features  which  had  no  more  news 
value  than  last  year's  almanac,  and  an  editorial  page  of  the  hu- 
man interest  type.  The  war  made  a  decided  change  by  putting 
more  news  into  the  pages  of  the  evening  editions.  The  difference 
in  time  between  America  and  Europe  often  gave  the  evening 
paper  almost  a  monopoly  of  the  war  news :  the  late  editions  had 
not  yet  gone  to  press  when  the  European  armies  bivouacked  for 
the  night.  Consequently  there  was  time  —  if  the  censor  did  not 
keep  union  hours  —  to  get  a  report  of  the  day's  activities. 

The  war  also  produced  a  change  in  the  routine  handling  of 
news.  Previously  newspapers  had  put  first  in  the  item  either  the 
most  important  or  the  most  startling  fact  and  had  then  hidden 
the  source  of  the  information  in  the  middle  of  the  first  paragraph. 
After  the  war  began  the  press  was  frequently  criticized  for  print- 
ing misleading  information.  Such  charges,  however,  were  usu- 
ally unfounded,  as  a  careful  perusal  of  the  item  would  show 
some  such  assertion  as  "according  to  a  bulletin  issued  yester- 
day." The  bulletin  may  have  contained  assertions  which  were 
not  true,  but  the  press  told  the  truth  when  it  asserted  that  the  bul- 
letin contained  such  and  such  statements.  Because  responsibil- 
ity was  placed  upon  the  newspaper  rather  than  upon  those  who 
issued  the  bulletins  and  statements,  the  press  usually  protected 
itself  by  emphasizing  in  the  opening  sentence  its  source  of  infor- 
mation. Military  necessity  may  have  demanded  the  publication 
of  misleading  items,  but  military  necessity  must  be  willing  to 
accept  the  responsibility  for  such  publicity. 


422       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

I  :• 

KEVIVAL  OF   EDITORIAL  PAGE 

The  war  from  the  start  did  much  to  revive  the  interest  in  the 
editorial  page  the  influence  of  which  had  declined  very  much 
in  the  Period  of  Financial  Readjustment.  Unfamiliar  with  Eu- 
ropean geography,  unacquainted  with  the  economic  and  politi- 
cal situations  in  the  warring  countries,  readers  found  they  must 
have  the  news  interpreted  through  the  editorial.  The  war 
made  readers  more  thoughtful  and  the  thoughtful  reader  has  al- 
ways been  a  reader  of  the  editorial  page.  Once  again  American 
journalism  found  itself  divided  into  two  groups,  one  of  which  was 
pro-Ally,  the  other,  pro-German,  in  its  editorial  sympathies. 
The  editorial  battles  between  the  two  developed  military  critics 
in  the  editorial  sanctum.  The  entrance  of  America  into  the  Great 
European  War  brought  these  two  factors  together  into  practi- 
cally a  harmonious  press,  with  only  here  and  there  an  exception 
to  prove  the  general  rule. 

The  attempt  of  certain  newspapers,  early  in  the  war,  to  be 
strictly  neutral  in  the  publishing  of  the  news,  was  rather  amus- 
ing. The  eighth  edition  of  a  metropolitan  daily  on  a  certain  day 
stretched  this  streamer  headline  across  the  page :  — 

Germans  Fall  Like  Leaves  at  the  Battle  of  Ypres. 

The  ninth  edition  of  the  same  paper  on  the  same  day  bore  this 
headline :  — 

Allies  Fall  Like  Leaves  at  the  Battle  of  Ypres. 

Could  any  newspaper  be  more  neutral? 

PAPER  SITUATION 

The  increase  in  the  cost  of  white  paper  later  made  space  more 
valuable.  The  result  was  that  there  was  a  noticeable  condensa- 
tion of  news  in  all  departments.  Special  features,  instead  of  being 
set  in  rather  large  type,  were  made  to  occupy  a  rather  smaller 
space  through  a  change  of  font,  or  by  the  omission  of  leads  be- 
tween the  lines.  Headlines  were  reduced  in  size;  though  they 
often  stretched  across  the  page,  they  were  in  much  smaller  type 
than  during  the  days  of  the  American  war  with  Spain  when,  as 


PERIOD  OF  SOCIAL  READJUSTMENT        423 

has  already  been  mentioned,  they  sometimes,  in  extreme  cases, 
practically  filled  half  of  the  front  page. 

The  increased  cost  of  production  raised  the  subscription  rates 
of  many  daily  newspapers  all  over  the  country  —  especially  was 
this  true  of  those  selling  at  one  cent.  Even  in  the  few  cities  where 
rates  were  not  raised  for  local  subscribers,  rates  were  raised  for 
those  living  outside  the  first  zone:  the  farther  zones  were  from  the 
place  of  publication,  the  larger  the  price.  Early  in  1917,  when 
the  shortage  of  wood  pulp  paper  was  most  acute,  the  papers  not 
only  limited  the  size  of  their  editions,  but  frequently  in  so  doing 
reduced  the  number.  Notices  similar  to  the  following  appeared : 

Owing  to  the  shortage  of  paper,  the  circulation  of  the  morning  edi- 
tion of  The  World  will  be  reduced  to  350,000  copies  'daily.  Beginning 
February  1st,  until  further  notice,  the  paper  will  be  absolutely  non- 
returnable. 

When  wood  chips,  which  had  been  previously  useful  only  as 
fuel  or  had  been  totally  discarded,  came  also  to  be  used  to  manu- 
facture wood  pulp  paper,  as  the  result  of  study  made  in  the  For- 
ests Products  Laboratory  at  Washington,  and  after  numerous 
economies  had  been  made  in  newspaper  plants  to  utilize  paper 
which  had  been  previously  thrown  away,  newspapers  were  able 
to  print  announcements  similar  to  the  following:  — 

The  World  having  purchased  the  High  Falls  Pulp  and  Paper  Com- 
pany, and  improved  the  conditions  of  its  newsprint  supply,  is  now  able 
to  more  nearly  approach  meeting  the  demands  of  its  readers  by  in- 
creasing the  daily  circulation  on  the  morning  edition  to  375,000,  but 
cannot  exceed  that  figure,  except  on  a  day  when  news  of  extraordi- 
nary importance  may  justify  a  departure  from  this  rule. 

PRESS   CENSORSHIP 

Shortly  after  the  entrance  of  America  into  the  war,  President 
Wilson  appointed  a  Committee  on  Public  Information,  the  pur- 
poses of  which  were  twofold :  first,  to  be  a  clearing-house  for  the 
news  of  the  various  departments  at  Washington;  second,  to  act 
as  censors  for  war  intelligence  received  from  other  sources.  The 
committee  consisted  of  the  Secretary  of  State,  the  Secretary  of 
War,  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  and  one  civilian,  George  Creel. 
Owing  to  practically  the  united  opposition  of  the  press,  Congress 


424       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

deprived  the  committee  of  its  second  function  and  limited  it  to 
the  dissemination  of  information.  The  committee,  however,  did 
issue  a  pamphlet,  based  largely  upon  a  similar  publication  put 
out  by  the  Press  Censor  of  Canada,  which  offered  suggestions  for 
voluntary  censorship.  The  attitude  of  the  press,  The  Tribune, 
of  New  York,  expressed  in  the  following  editorial :  — 

Must  every  censor  or  would-be  censor  put  on  the  clown's  livery? 
Must  he  lose  all  sense  of  restraint  and  judgment,  all  touch  with  actuali- 
ties? Certainly  there  seems  to  be  something  in  this  perilous  office  which 
goes  to  a  man's  brains  and  makes  him  the  easy  victim  of  his  own 
fatuity. 

Mr.  George  Creel's  latest  promulgation  is  a  case  in  point.  He  has 
just  issued  a  new  series  of  "voluntary"  censorship  regulations  and  de- 
clared them  in  effect  from  yesterday.  They  are  "voluntary"  regulations 
only  in  the  sense  that  they  have  no  warrant  of  law  behind  them.  The 
newspapers  have  not  volunteered  to  respect  them.  Nor  could  they 
consent  to  respect  all  of  them  without  at  the  same  time  submitting  to 
a  dictatorship  more  fantastic  and  oppressive  than  exists  in  any  other 
nation  now  at  war.  Even  in  Turkey,  we  fancy,  newspapers  may  still 
do  what  Mr.  Creel  wants  to  prohibit  American  newspapers  from  doing. 

The  American  press  was  doubtless  influenced  by  the  results 
of  censorship  in  England,  where  papers  like  The  London  Times 
and  The  London  Daily  Mail  had  asserted  that  press  censorship 
was  pernicious  and  had  been  used  solely  to  protect  office-holders 
and  blunderers  from  the  penalties  of  their  own  stupidity  and  in- 
efficiency. "Secrecy  helps  these  men,"  said  Lord  Northcliffe, 
owner  of  the  two  papers  just  mentioned,  "to  protect  their  false 
positions  and  to  do  damage  to  the  nation.  Publicity  pricks  the 
bubble;  that  is  why  so  many  of  them  hate  publicity  when  it 
begins  to  be  critical." 

The  Committee  on  Public  Information,  though  deprived  of  all 
censorship  save  where  newspapers  voluntarily  chose  to  submit 
news  items  for  inspection,  did  excellent  work  in  the  matter  of 
publicity  for  different  branches  of  the  Government.  Had  not  the 
two  functions,  censorship  and  publicity,  been  joined  at  the  start, 
the  cooperation  of  the  press  would  have  been  more  complete. 

When  Congress  passed  in  September,  1917,  the  Trading  with 
the  Enemy  Act,  it  gave  the  Postmaster-General  power  not  only 
to  refuse  the  second-class  entry  privilege  to  newspapers  publish- 


PERIOD  OF  SOCIAL  READJUSTMENT        425 

ing  treasonable  or  seditious  matter,  but  also  to  penalize  papers 
reprinting  articles  from  publications  declared  unmailable.  The 
Postmaster-General  thus  outlined  how  he  planned  to  administer 
the  act  which  gave  him  so  much  power  over  the  press :  — 

This  legislation  is  not  to  prevent  criticism  of  the  Government  or  the 
Administration  or  the  Post-Office  Department.  It  is  not  aimed  against 
Socialist  publications  or  any  other  kind  of  publications  as  a  class.  The 
newspapers  can  denounce  the  Postmaster-General  or  the  Administra- 
tion all  they  like,  and  they  can  have  such  criticism  circulated  through 
the  mails.  But  if  we  find  newspapers  preaching  disloyalty,  newspapers 
that  are  really  German  at  heart  and  in  secret  sympathy  with  the  Ger- 
man Government  which  we  are  fighting,  newspapers  which  are  trying 
to  make  the  masses  in  this  country  believe  that  this  is  a  capitalists' 
war  and  that  the  Government  therefore  ought  not  to  be  supported  — 
those  publications  we  intend  to  suppress  with  a  firm  hand,  because  we 
are  at  war  with  the  Imperial  German  Government.  The  country  has 
declared  war.  Any  one  who  deliberately  sets  afoot  a  propaganda  to 
discourage  support  to  the  Government  as  against  its  enemies  is  doing  a 
treasonable  thing.  We  must  win  the  war,  and  we  cannot  brook  disloy- 
alty at  home. 

EXPOSURE   OF  GERMAN   INTRIGtJE 

In  exposing  German  intrigue  The  Journal  of  Providence  led 
all  other  American  newspapers  and  lived  up  to  its  reputation  for 
enterprise  established  way  back  in  the  Revolutionary  Period. 
During  the  first  year,  the  exposures  of  The  Journal  were  accepted 
by  the  press  with  natural  reluctance,  but  so  many]  of  them 
became  verified  that  newspapers,  not  merely  in  the  United 
States,but  also  in  England,  France,  and  Italy,  regularly  reprinted 
the  sensational  disclosures  of  The  Journal.  A  fitting  tribute  to 
that  newspaper  was  thus  given  in  The  Evening  Transcript  of 
Boston:  — 

The  Providence  Journal  is  entitled  to  the  thanks  of  the  country  for 
the  remarkable  success  of  the  inquiries  into  the  German  spy  system 
and  the  German  propaganda  in  this  country  which  it  has  conducted. 
The  Journal's  discoveries  have  been  the  basis  for  about  three-quar- 
ters —  possibly  a  larger  proportion  than  that  —  of  the  Government's 
proceedings  against  the  German  plotters;  the  scalps  of  Boy-Ed  and 
Von  Papen  hang  at  its  tepee  door;  and  it  was  upon  The  Journal 's  in- 
formation that  most  of  the  judicial  proceedings  now  pending  were 


426       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

taken.  It  has  been  a  patriotic  service  to  ferret  out  this  plotting  and 
treason  —  and  the  work  is  by  no  means  completed.  There  is  not  the 
slightest  doubt  that  The  Journal  has  a  good  many  more  sharp  arrows 
'  in  its  quiver.  It  has  taught  the  metropolitan  press,  and  that  of  Boston, 
a  lesson  in  enterprise;  it  has  advertised  itself  quite  legitimately  through- 
out the  world,  for  The  Journal  is  now  known  in  Downing  Street  and 
Wilhelmstrasse,  as  well  as  on  Westminster  Street;  and  it  has  performed 
a  work  that  will  be  remembered  in  the  history  of  the  war. 

FIRST  ARMY  EDITION 

The  first  American  newspaper  which  had  an  army  edition 
was  The  Tribune,  of  Chicago.  On  July  4,  1917,  in  spite  of  the 
paper  scarcity,  it  started  publishing  a  daily  paper  in  Paris  for 
the  American  soldiers  "  somewhere  in  France."  As  no  young 
printers  were  available,  most  of  the  work  was  done  by  French 
women  who  did  not  understand  English.  In  spite  of  this  handi- 
cap, editions  were  fairly  free  from  typographical  errors.  As  there 
are  few  "?/V'  and  "w's"  in  the  French  language,  the  supply  was 
soon  exhausted  and  editorial  writers  and  reporters  were  forced 
to  use  English  words  which  did  not  have  these  letters  in  their 
spelling.  While  the  paper  had  many  features  of  its  namesake  in 
Chicago,  it  gave  most  of  its  space  to  news  of  America.  It  sold  for 
ten  centimes  or  two  cents  per  copy  and  its  yearly  rate  was  fixed 
at  thirty  francs  or  six  dollars.  Though  designed  primarily  for  cir- 
culation among  the  American  soldiers  quartered  in  France,  the 
army  edition  of  The  Tribune  built  up  a  substantial  circulation 
among  the  English  and  American  residents  in  Paris.  Joseph  B. 
Pierson  was  its  first  editor. 

ARMY  AND  CAMP  ORGANS 

In  September,  1917,  arrangements  were  made  for  the  publica- 
tion of  a  soldiers'  weekly  newspaper  in  most  National  Army  and 
National  Guard  camps.  The  paper  to  a  certain  extent  was  co- 
operative in  that  four  of  its  pages  were  compiled  and  supplied 
by  the  central  New  York  office.  These  four  pages  were  then  sent 
to  the  cooperating  publisher  in  the  local  field.  He  added  the 
news  of  the  local  camp  and  finished  printing  the  sheet.  Distribu- 
tion was  secured  through  Y.M.C.A.  headquarters. 

Cooperation  was  secured  from  local  newspapers  because  the 


PERIOD   OF   SOCIAL   READJUSTMENT        427 

soldiers'  weekly  did  not  carry  advertising  and  was  not  sold  and 
there  could  be  no  competition  with  other  newspapers.  To  the 
credit  of  the  South  it  should  be  said  that  its  newspapers  were 
among  the  first  to  cooperate  in  the  plan.  Early  cooperation  was 
secured  from  The  News-Leader,  of  Richmond,  Virginia;  The 
News,  of  Birmingham,  Alabama;  The  Advertiser,  of  Montgomery, 
Alabama;  The  Constitution,  of  Atlanta,  Georgia;  The  Telegraph, 
of  Macon,  Georgia;  The  Courier  -Journal,  of  Louisville,  Ken- 
tucky. 

REPRESENTED    "  SOMEWHERE   IN   FRANCE  " 

Represented  directly  with  the  First  Expeditionary  Force  to 
France  were  the  following  newspapers  and  associations:  — 

The  Associated  Press. 

The  United  Press. 

The  International  News  Service. 

The  Associated  Papers. 

The  Newspaper  Enterprise  Association.  ' 

The  Philadelphia  Ledger  Syndicate. 

The  Munsey  group  of  newspapers. 

The  New  York  Times  and  group  of  newspapers. 

The  New  York  Herald  Syndicate. 

The  Chicago  Tribune  and  group  of  newspapers. 

The  New  York  World  and  group  of  newspapers. 

The  New  York  Tribune. 

The  Philadelphia  North  American  and  group  of  newspapers. 

The  Denver  Post. 

Collier's  Weekly. 

In  addition  to  these  accredited  correspondents  in  the  field, 
a  number  were  permitted  to  go  to  Paris  with  letters  to  the 
Maison  de  la  Presse,  commending  them  to  the  French  Govern- 
ment and  opening  numerous  news  channels  of  considerable 
breadth  for  them.  Included  in  this  second  category  were  numer- 
ous magazine  writers,  as  well  as  newspaper  correspondents. 


*    * 


428       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

This  chapter  must  conclude  with  the  imprinted  line  which  ap- 
pears in  the  last  column  of  the  last  page  of  the  daily  newspaper : — 

To  be  continued  to-morrow. 

Though  stopping  at  a  time  when  the  American  newspaper  is 
undergoing  many  changes,  it  must  of  necessity  be  an  unfinished 
chapter  —  to  be  edited  and  revised  later.  Of  nothing  can  it 
more  truthfully  be  said,  that  "no  man  knoweth  what  the  day  or 
hour  may  bring  forth/'  than  of  the  newspaper.  But  one  need 
not  be  a  prophet,  nor  the  son  of  a  prophet,  to  realize  what  has  so 
often  been  stated  in  the  pages  of  this  book,  that  the  newspaper  is 
a  motion  picture  of  life's  drama,  with  a  plot  furnished  by  the 
politics  and  the  society  of  the  times. 


CHAPTER  XX     . 
JOURNALISM  OF  TO-DAY 
VIEWS  AND   INTERVIEWS 

ATTENTION  has  been  repeatedly  called  to  the  fact  that  jour- 
nalism is  a  mirror  of  the  times.  It  is  a  mirror  of  the  people  in 
general,  and  the  individual  paper  is  a  mirror  of  its  subscribers. 
Arthur  Brisbane  in  discussing  newspaper  work  once  remarked :  — 

The  newspaper  is  not,  as  Schopenhauer  says,  "a  shadow  on  the  wall," 
although  many  a  newspaper  is  a  mere  shadow  of  what  a  newspaper  should 
be.  A  newspaper  is  a  mirror  reflecting  the  public,  a  mirror  more  or  less 
defective,  but  still  a  mirror.  And  the  paper  that  the  individual  holds 
in  his  hand  reflects  that  individual  more  or  less  accurately. 

On  this  point  the  late  Whitelaw  Reid,  when  editor  of  The  New 
York  Tribune,  said :  — 

The  thing  always  forgotten  by  the  closest  critic  of  the  newspapers  is 
that  they  must  be  immeasurably  what  their  audiences  make  them; 
what  their  constituencies  call  for  and  sustain.  The  newspaper  cannot 
uniformly  resist  the  popular  sentiment  any  more  than  the  stream  can 
flow  above  its  fountain.  To  say  that  the  newspapers  are  getting  worse 
is  to  say  that  the  people  are  getting  worse.  They  may  work  more  evil 
now  than  they  have  ever  wrought  before,  because  the  influence  is  more 
widespread;  but  they  also  work  more  good,  and  the  habitual  attitude 
of  the  newspaper  is  one  of  effort  toward  the  best  its  audiences  will 
tolerate. 

Arthur  Twining  Hadley,  president  of  Yale  University,  prac- 
tically concurred  in  the  opinions  just  noted  when  he  wrote:  — 

If  we  are  to  have  responsible  newspapers,  the  reform  must  begin  with 
the  readers  themselves.  Most  of  the  men  who  edit  newspapers  will  give 
the  people  the  kind  of  newspapers  they  want.  There  will,  of  course,  be 
exceptionally  good  editors  who  will  make  their  papers  better  than 
their  readers  demand,  and  try  to  educate  the  people  up  to  a  higher  level; 
just  as  there  will  be  exceptionally  bad  editors,  who  will  make  papers 
worse  than  the  readers  want,  and  be  the  instruments,  whether  they  try 
to  or  not,  of  educating  the  public  down  to  a  lower  level.  But  the  average 


430       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

editor  will  work  for  the  average  reader.  He  cannot  be  any  more  in- 
dependent of  the  man  who  buys  his  goods  than  the  manufacturer  or 
merchant  can  be.  A  manufacturer  who  refuses  to  produce  things  that 
the  people  want,  because  he  thinks  they  ought  to  want  something  better, 
will  be  driven  out  of  business,  and  so  will  a  newspaper  editor.  People 
sometimes  talk  of  "yellow  journalism"  as  if  the  editors  of  the  yellow 
journals  were  solely  responsible  for  their  existence.  They  are  responsible 
to  some  degree;  but  to  a  still  larger  degree  the  responsibility  lies  with 
the  public  that  will  buy  and  read  their  news. 

Other  college  presidents  share  this  same  view.  While  presi- 
dent of  the  University  of  Minnesota,  George  Edward  Vincent 
declared :  — 

The  press  is  more  than  a  business.  It  is  a  social  service  fundamental 
to  the  national  life,  exerting  profound  influence  upon  it.  The  men  of  the 
press  must  recognize  the  social  nature  of  their  task.  If  the  press  be  a 
corporation,  it  is  a  public  service  corporation  with  all  of  the  social 
responsibility  that  this  implies.  The  American  press  reflects  the  life  of 
all  of  us,  and  it  affects  the  life  of  all  of  us.  We  must  all  share  the  com- 
mon task  of  raising  slowly,  steadily,  courageously  this  life  to  a  higher 
level  of  truth,  of  justice,  of  good  will.  We,  the  people,  make  the  press 
what  it  is.  The  press  can  help  us  to  make  it  and  all  our  national  in- 
stitutions more  nearly  what  they  should  be. 

Those  who  maintain  that  the  newspaper  has  outgrown  the 
looking-glass  stage,  and  should  be  developed  along  lines  of 
community  interest,  overlook  the  fact  that  the  paper  which 
devotes  its  energies  to  community  welfare  is  but  reflecting  the 
trend  of  the  times.  The  old-fashioned  church,  open  only  on  Sun- 
day, has  in  many  communities  become  the  institutional  church 
which  not  only  preaches,  but  also  practices  the  ideals  of  its 
Founder.  The  American  university  is  taking  the  torch  of  learn- 
ing from  its  academic  seal  and  using  it  to  light  its  halls  at  night 
for  the  instruction  of  those  unable  either  on  account  of  the  time 
or  money  to  take  the  regular  course. 

SUPPRESSION  OF  NEWS 

The  charge  most  often  brought  against  the  newspaper  to-day 
is  that  it  suppresses  news  because  it  fears  certain  powerful  ad- 
vertisers. This  charge  is  quite  different  from  that  of  giving  free 
publicity  to  advertisers  in  the  news  columns.  Oswald  Garrison 


JOURNALISM  OF  TO-DAY  431 

Villard,  of  The  New  York  Evening  Post,  has  testified  that  the 
newspaper  upon  which  he  worked  in  Philadelphia  used  to  send 
him  to  its  large  advertisers  with  the  statement  that  "they  could 
have  as  much  space  in  news  columns  at  anytime  as  they  wanted." 
Undoubtedly,  such  a  condition  too  often  existed  during  the  Pe- 
riod of  Financial  Readjustment.  No  such  condition,  however, 
obtains  to-day.  On  the  other  hand,  the  first  charge  deserves  care- 
ful consideration.  There  has  been  in  a  few  cities  a  suppression  of 
news  because  of  fear  of  advertisers,  but  it  has  always  been  fraught 
with  great  danger  to  the  local  press.  Mr.  Villard  has  admitted 
that  the  press  of  Philadelphia  "has  never  recovered  from  the 
blow  to  its  prestige  when  it  actually  refused  to  tell  the  story  of  a 
crime  of  the  member  of  one  of  the  large  drygoods  houses."  Yet 
this  omission  proved  the  impossibility  of  suppressing  news,  for 
the  story  appeared  in  New  York  papers  which  sold  rapidly  in 
the  streets  of  Philadelphia.  The  story  was  taken  up  and  told  all 
over  the  country  through  the  pages  of  the  monthly  magazines  and 
the  literary  weeklies.  The  suppression  of  the  news  did  more 
harm  to  innocent  members  of  the  firm  than  had  the  Philadel- 
phia papers  given  a  whole  edition  to  the  story  of  the  crime. 
The  publicity  given  this  incident  would  indicate  that  such  sup- 
pressions are  rare. 

A  controversy  arose  later  between  this  same  mercantile  estab- 
lishment and  the  city  of  Philadelphia  over  the  question  of  fire 
prevention  appliances,  etc.,  required  by  city  ordinances:  it  came 
from  a  movement  started  by  the  Alumnse  Committee  of  Bryn 
Mawr  College  which  was  studying  fire  prevention  in  factories, 
shops,  and  stores  where  women  and  girls  were  employed.  The 
Bryn  Mawr  Committee  once  complained  that  it  had  wrestled  in 
vain  with  the  Philadelphia  papers  to  take  the  matter  up  and  that 
the  local  press  had  refused  to  mention  the  store  save  in  the  way 
of  kindness.  The  press  of  Philadelphia  again  received  rebuke  at 
the  hands  of  publications  of  national  circulation.  In  comment- 
ing on  the  incident,  The  Outlook,  of  New  York  City,  called  at- 
tention to  the  serious  social  danger  from  the  muzzling  of  the 
newspaper  by  powerful  advertisers. 

r   A  letter  from  the  manager  of  the  Philadelphia  store  to  the 
present  writer  said:  — 


432       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

Do  you  mind  if  we  say  we  feel  the  condition  to  which  you  allude  has 
been  represented,  we  think,  in  an  unfair  way? 

Unquestionably,  the  firm  was  treated  unfairly  by  local  papers 
which  suppressed  news  to  which  the  public  was  legitimately  en- 
titled. In  justice  to  the  firm  it  must  be  admitted  that  there  were 
extenuating  circumstances  which  if  the  Philadelphia  papers  had 
recorded  would  have  put  the  firm  before  its  patrons  in  quite  a 
different  light  for  the  Bryn  Mawr  Alumnae  knew  how  to  bring 
pressure  upon  charge  customers. 

Another  paragraph  of  the  letter  from  the  manager  of  the 
store  ought  to  be  quoted:  — 

The  matter  has  been  settled  amiably  and  completely  by  the  city 
authorities  of  Philadelphia  and  ourselves,  as  you,  doubtless,  observed 
from  the  reports  of  the  papers. 

The  present  writer  did  observe  those  reports,  not  merely  in 
papers  published  outside  of  Philadelphia,  but  also  in  those  of  that 
city. 

Yet  Philadelphia,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  furnishes  the  honest 
and  conscientious  editor  with  positive  proof  that  readers  will  not 
stand  any  interference  on  the  part  of  the  advertiser  in  an  at- 
tempt to  control  editorial  policies.  During  the  heat  of  the  Presi- 
dential Campaign  of  1912,  the  page  advertisement  of  a  depart- 
ment store,  a  rival  of  the  one  to  which  reference  has  just  been 
made,  was  withdrawn  one  Friday  night  from  a  Philadelphia 
newspaper.  No  intimation  had  previously  reached  its  editor  that 
such  a  step  was  contemplated  and  the  action  was  unaccompanied 
either  by  word  or  letter  to  throw  light  upon  the  subject.  Adver- 
tising solicitors  were  instructed  to  make  no  inquiry  as  to  the 
cause  of  the  discontinuance  of  the  advertisement.  The  editor 
instructed  the  staff  to  make  no  explanations  or  comments  about 
the  matter.  He  then  left  for  his  old  home  to  visit  his  mother. 
He  was  absent  about  a  week.  Upon  his  return  he  was  notified 
that  the  page  advertisement  would  be  resumed  the  following 
Monday. 

The  absence  of  the  page  for  a  whole  week  not  only  attracted 
much  attention,  but  caused  much  comment.  Readers  of  the 
paper  thought  that  they  saw  in  the  absence  of  the  advertise- 


JOURNALISM  OF  TO-DAY  433 

ment  an  act  of  reprisal  against  the  paper  on  account  of  its  edi- 
torial attitude  on  national  politics.  Subscribers  put  their  own 
interpretation  on  the  disappearance  of  the  advertising  and  in- 
ferred that  the  paper  had  been  threatened  with  a  loss  of  adver- 
tising unless  its  editorial  policy  on  politics  was  modified.  Let- 
ters and  telegrams  of  protest  in  large  numbers  poured  in  upon 
the  owner  of  the  department  store.  Their  writers  threatened  to 
refuse  to  trade  at  the  store  unless  the  advertising  was  returned  to 
the  newspaper.  The  advertising  was  sent  back  without  any  con- 
dition suggested  or  implied.  The  editorial  policy  of  the  paper 
was  not  changed  one  iota,  although  it  may  have  seemed  to  the 
public  that  it  was  a  little  more  vigorous  than  ever  before. 

In  passing  from  Philadelphia  to  New  York,  the  two  stores  just 
mentioned,  for  branches  of  them  are  in  both  cities,  may  again  be 
used  for  purposes  of  illustration.  When  the  first  store  opened  in 
New  York  it  wanted  to  give  its  name  to  the  thoroughfare  upon 
which  its  building  was  located.  In  spite  of  the  thousands  of  dol- 
lars which  it  was  spending  for  advertising  the  press  of  New  York 
fought  the  change,  although  the  store  was  only  attempting  what 
it  might  perfectly  legitimately  try  to  do.  Later,  the  store  at- 
tempted to  free  the  sidewalks  in  front  of  its  store  from  "cadets," 
"mashers,"  and  all  other  groups  of  young  men  who  follow  the 
swish  of  a  silken  petticoat,  as  patrons  of  the  store  had  been  an- 
noyed by  the  insults  of  these  good-for-nothing  chaps.  It  was  a 
fine  thing  to  do.  But  some  one  blundered  in  making  a  request 
that  any  account  of  this  activity  of  the  store  be  suppressed  in  the 
local  press.  The  request  simply  sent  the  account  of  the  affair  to 
the  first  page  and  put  the  firm's  name  in  the  headline.  Other- 
wise, there  probably  would  have  been  just  passing  mention.  The 
store  was  again  badly  treated  by  the  newspapers  for  it  obtained 
undesirable  publicity  about  a  condition  which  undoubtedly  ex- 
isted around  other  stores  whose  owners  lacked  the  courage  to 
take  up  the  matter. 

When  the  Bryn  Mawr  Fire  Prevention  study  was  seemingly 
lacking  the  cooperation  of  the  Philadelphia  papers,  a  New  York 
evening  paper  —  The  Evening  Post,  to  render  unto  Caesar  the 
things  that  are  Caesar's  —  sent  a  man  to  Philadelphia  to  make  a 
quiet  investigation  and  to  discuss  the  situation  with  the  Phila- 


434       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

delphia  store.  A  conference  with  the  store  was  sufficient  with- 
out publication  to  bring  about  nearly  all  the  changes  originally 
desired.  To  the  unbiased  critic  it  may  seem  as  though  the  news- 
paper went  out  of  its  own  local  news  field  in  going  to  Philadel- 
phia to  make  the  investigation,  but  The  Evening  Post  has  ever 
had  a  high  standard  regarding  its  duty  to  the  public. 

George  Creel,  who  was  appointed  by  President  Wilson  chair- 
man of  the  Committee  on  Public  Information,  in  a  magazine 
article  published  in  January,  1917,  brought  against  the  press  of 
New  York  the  serious  and  specific  charge  that  the  department 
stores  "can  exercise  an  absolute  censorship  whenevei  they 
choose  to  do  so."  His  general  conclusion  —  "The  same  condi- 
tion exists  in  every  city  large  enough  to  have  department 
stores"  —  may  be  dismissed  without  further  discussion  because 
made  without  any  proof  to  substantiate  the  generalization.  His 
charge  against  the  newspapers  of  New  York,  however,  deserves 
careful  consideration  because  it  seemed  to  be  supported  by  evi- 
dence based  on  the  fact  that  New  York  papers  refused  to  insert 
a  political  advertisement  attacking  the  owner  of  the  second  store 
used  for  illustration.  The  article  clearly  implied  that  the  rejec- 
tion of  the  advertisement  was  due  to  a  fear  that  the  owner  of  the 
store  might  withdraw  his  advertising.  Mr.  Creel,  however,  failed 
to  explain  why  The  New  York  Times  rejected  the  advertisement 
in  view  of  the  fact  that  the  store  did  not  advertise  in  The  Times 
and  was  therefore  without  a  club  to  swing  at  the  paper.  The  in- 
sertion of  the  rejected  advertisement  —  a  copy  of  which  lies 
before  the  present  writer  —  would  make  any  newspaper  subject 
to  a  suit  for  libel.  Any  man  running  for  public  office  must  assume 
that  his  Me  is  going  to  be  open  to  attack  from  all  points,  in  order 
that  voters  may  be  properly  informed  to  pass  upon  his  quali- 
fications for  office.  Quite  a  different  condition  obtains  in  at- 
tacks made  upon  a  man  not  before  people  for  election  to  office. 
The  New  York  papers  in  general  and  The  New  York  Times  in 
particular  have  refused  thousands  of  dollars  worth  of  advertising 
where  the  copy  consisted  of  scurrilous  attacks  upon  character. 

For  years  critics  asserted  that  the  most  positive  proof  that  the 
department  stores  controlled  the  policies  of  New  York  papers 
was  found  in  the  fact  that  the  greatest  news  story  lying  around 


JOURNALISM   OF  TO-DAY  435 

loose  was  the  fire  hazard  in  these  stores  and  that  no  newspaper 
had  the  courage  to  describe  the  conditions.  Yet  when  conditions 
attending  employment  in  the  large  department  stores  in  New 
York  were  publicly  taken  up  at  a  hearing  of  the  Federal  Com- 
mission on  Industrial  Relations,  the  New  York  papers  printed 
without  suppression  the  facts  brought  out  at  the  inquiry,  not 
only  about  the  two  stores  to  which  reference  has  been  made,  but 
also  about  all  the  larger  stores  of  the  city.  [For  some  reason, 
doubtless  best  known  to  city  editors,  the  following  assertion  by 
former  Chief  Guerin  of  the  Bureau  of  Fire  Prevention  was 
omitted:  "I  must  say  that  the  department  store  managers  are 
fair  and  ready  to  do  anything  within  reason  to  correct  existing 
imperfect  conditions."  City  editors  have  seen  no  reason  why 
they  should  attack  fire  hazards  in  department  stores  when  worse 
conditions  existed  in  many  manufacturing  plants.  They  were 
unable,  in  spite  of  several  attempts,  to  arouse  the  people  to  the 
necessity  of  better  working  conditions  and  regretted  that  it 
would  take  a  great  holocaust  like  the  fire  in  the  Triangle  Shirt- 
waist Factory  to  arouse  the  public  conscience. 

Not  long  ago  the  owner  of  a  large  department  store  failed  in 
business.  There  was  a  pretty  well  founded  rumor  that  condi- 
tions had  not  been  just  right  at  his  store  for  some  time.  Because 
the  New  York  papers  did  not  give  any  publicity  to  the  matter 
till  the  failure  was  a  legal  fact,  they  were  accused  of  suppressing 
the  news  because  of  the  advertising  revenue  derived  from  the 
store.  Such  critics  overlooked  the  fact  that  such  publication 
might  have  made  the  newspapers  financially  responsible  for 
the  failure.  During  the  Panic  of  1907  a  New  York  newspaper 
printed  a  story  that  a  certain  business  establishment  was  on  the 
verge  of  bankruptcy.  It  was,  and  later  failed.  The  owners 
brought  suit  against  the  newspapers  and  collected  heavy  damages 
on  the  ground  that  the  failure  had  been  caused  by  the  publi- 
cation of  the  item.  Courts,  as  Whitelaw  Reid,  of  The  New  York 
Tribune,  pointed  out  in  his  lecture  on  "  Journalism "  at  Yale 
University,  have  been  rather  harsh  on  newspapers  for  publish- 
ing items  of  this  character  and  newspapers  cannot  be  blamed  for 
the  use  of  ordinary  common  sense  in  such  matters. 

One  incident,  unfortunate  and  distressing,  has  been  tossed 


436       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

about  all  over  the  country  to  show  the  control  of  Boston  jour- 
nalism by  the  department  stores.  A  woman  who  was  shortly  to 
become  a  mother  was  arrested  at  one  of  the  stores  on  the  charge 
of  shoplifting:  she  was  supposed  to  have  secreted  on  her  person 
goods  taken  from  counters  of  the  store.  While  being  subjected 
to  a  search  she  was  taken  ill  and  serious  consequences  followed. 
Her  husband,  after  the  loss  of  the  child,  sued  the  store  for  dam- 
ages —  as  he  should  —  and  was  awarded  a  verdict  rather  sub- 
stantial in  amount.  The  Boston  papers,  possibly  with  a  single 
exception,  did  not  —  as  they  should  not  —  print  the  story  even 
though  the  testimony  was  somewhat  sensational.  For  some  rea- 
son the  wishes  of  the  family  have  been  overlooked  in  a  discussion 
of  the  incident.  If  ever  there  was  a  just  cause  for  requesting  a 
suppression  of  news  it  was  here.  Such  incidents  do  not  concern 
public  welfare  and  ought  to  be  omitted  from  the  columns  of 
American  newspapers.  Had  there  been  any  miscarriage  of  jus- 
tice, there  would  be  some  justification  for  printing  the  item, 
but  no  such  condition  obtained. 

In  another  city  conditions  were  quite  like  those  in  Boston, 
only  there  had  been  several  similar  incidents,  though  less  dis- 
astrous in  results.  A  large  store  had  moved  farther  uptown  and 
with  its  larger  quarters  it  had  been  forced  to  employ  green  detec- 
tives who  frequently  made  errors.  In  fact,  they  made  so  many 
blunders  that  managers  of  other  department  stores  went  to  the 
press  with  the  request  for  publicity  in  order  that  the  evil  might 
be  corrected.  One  newspaper  publisher  told  the  representatives 
from  the  stores,  "You  can't  get  publicity  for  such  stuff  in  my 
paper,  even  if  all  of  you  withdraw  your  advertising."  He  was 
quite  right.  Such  an  incident  does  not  properly  belong  in  a  book 
of  this  character,  but  has  been  inserted  because  of  the  promi- 
nence it  has  been  given  by  critics  of  journalism. 

Another  Boston  incident  has  attracted  much  attention.  A 
certain  department  store  in  that  city  desired  to  unite  its  two 
buildings  by  a  covered  passageway  across  a  city  street.  As 
certain  legal  technicalities  interfered  with  the  construction,  the 
attorney-general  of  the  State  rendered  an  opinion  that  a  muni- 
cipal permit  was  not  sufficient  and  that  special  action  of  the 
State  Legislature  was  necessary.  The  Evening  Transcript  in 


JOURNALISM   OF  TO-DAY  437 

Boston  printed  the  opinion  of  the  attorney-general  and  the  ad- 
vertising of  the  department  store  was  temporarily  suspended  in 
the  columns  of  The  Transcript.  Newspaper  critics  at  once  jumped 
to  the  conclusion  that  the  store  withdrew  its  advertising  in  an 
at.tempt  to  dictate  policies  to  The  Transcript  or  to  punish  The 
Transcript  for  not  being  more  thoughtful  of  department  stores. 
To  these  critics  the  thought  never  occurred  that  there  might  be 
other  reasons  for  withdrawal  of  advertising.  But  even  if  the 
critics  were  right,  the  incident  shows  the  independence  of  The 
Transcript  and  may  have  impressed  the  department  store  with 
its  dependence  on  newspaper  advertising,  for  it  is  now  one  of  the 
most  liberal  users  of  space  in  that  publication.  Department 
stores  simply  cannot  get  along  without  the  newspapers.  The 
great  newspaper  strike  in  Chicago  showed  the  dependence  of 
department  stores  upon  newspapers  —  a  dependence  forcibly 
impressed  by  the  loss  of  trade  through  inability  to  tell  patrons 
about  store  bargains.  Not  until  the  newspapers  with  their  store 
advertising  appeared  again  on  Chicago  streets  did  business  be- 
come normal. 

OPINIONS  OF  ADVERTISERS 

For  some  reason  critics  have  not  gone  to  department  stores  for 
information.  A  little  investigation  shows  that  department  stores 
feel  that  they  have  not  been  treated  squarely  by  newspapers. 
They  assert  that  a  man  cannot  have  a  harmless  fit  in  their 
buildings  without  some  account  getting  into  the  newspapers, 
while  he  may  have  as  many  fits  as  he  chooses  in  a  smaller  store 
without  a  single  line  in  the  newspapers  to  record  the  fact.  De- 
partment stores  maintain  that  every  time  their  delivery  wagons 
have  an  accident  the  fact  is  made  known  in  the  press  with  the 
name  of  the  store  to  which  the  wagon  belonged  printed  conspicu- 
ously in  the  account,  while  horses  attached  to  wagons  of  smaller 
stores  may  run  away  and  do  considerable  damage  with  news- 
paper readers  none  the  wiser  about  the  event.  Department 
stores  feel  that  the  newspapers  might  render  a  little  editorial 
assistance  in  matters  of  public  convenience  and  public  safety 
such  as  a  bridge  joining  two  buildings  occupied  by  the  same  store : 
they  assert  that  the  newspapers  are  unwilling  to  endorse  such 


438       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

enterprises  lest  the  charge  be  brought  against  them  of  being  in- 
fluenced by  advertising.  Almost  every  department  store  has  its 
tale  of  woe  about  the  lack  of  cooperation  from  newspapers  in 
announcing  the  welfare  movements  started  among  employees. 
On  the  whole,  department  stores  present  just  as  strong  a  case 
against  the  newspapers  as  do  the  critics.  Did  not  this  condition 
obtain,  there  would  be  more  reason  to  suspect  truth  in  the  charge 
that  advertising  possibly  influences  the  news  and  editorial 
columns. 

OPINIONS   OF  BUSINESS  MANAGERS 

Don  C.  Seitz,  business  manager  of  The  New  York  World,  has 
testified  as  follows  about  the  charge  that  advertisers  run  the 
policy  of  the  newspapers :  — 

I  have  been  for  twenty  years  in  the  business  office  of  The  New  York 
World  and  I  do  not  recall  a  half-dozen  attempts  on  the  part  of  adver- 
tisers to  influence  it,  and  of  these  attempts  only  one  was  a  matter  of 
public  concern  about  which  there  were  two  very  fair  opinions.  We  did 
not  accept  the  advertiser's  view.  It  is  some  five  years  since  I  have  had 
an  advertiser  ask  me  to  do  anything,  even  in  his  personal  interests, 
unless  perhaps  to  print  a  wedding  notice,  or  the  mention  of  some  social 
affair,  and  in  this  I  rather  think  the  editors  treated  him  more  shabbily 
than  if  it  had  been  some  one  else.  Good  editors  are  not  interfered  with 
on  great  newspapers.  If  they  were,  there  would  be  neither  good  edi- 
tors nor  great  newspapers. 

Louis  Wiley,  business  manager  of  The  New  York  Times,  in 
his  address  on  "The  Newspaper  of  To-day"  has  a  long  list  of 
items  which  were  published  in  The  Times  and  which  mention 
specifically  department  stores  where  omission  might  have  been 
desired.  The  Times  on  several  occasions  has  been  absolutely 
fearless  in  printing  such  news.  On  a  few  occasions  it  avoided 
even  the  appearance  of  evil.  For  example,  it  refused  to  sell  a 
political  party  several  thousand  copies  of  a  certain  issue  con- 
taining an  editorial  desired  for  circulation  among  voters  in  an 
approaching  election  because  it  feared  that  readers  might  think 
that  the  editorial  was  inspired  by  party  allegiance. 

On  this  matter  of  outside  dictation,  General  Charles  H.  Taylor, 
of  The  Boston  Globe,  once  said :  — 


JOURNALISM  OF  TO-DAY  439 

I  can  assure  those  of  our  friends  who  are  filled  with  the  fear  that 
advertisers  and  the  interests  will  control  the  movements,  opinions,  and 
news  of  the  prosperous  and  independent  press,  that  they  need  not  lose 
any  more  sleep  over  The  Globe.  Advertisers  and  readers  alike  know  that 
they  will  be  treated  with  absolute  fairness  by  The  Globe,  because  that 
is  the  bed-rock  basis  on  which  this  newspaper  has  been  conducted  for 
forty  years  and  it  is  the  rule  which  will  guide  it  in  the  years  to  come. 

In  the  few  instances  where  powerful  interests,  whether  through 
ownership  or  otherwise,  have  dictated  policies  which  were  against 
the  interests  of  the  common  welfare,  the  newspapers  thus  con- 
trolled have  lost  steadily  in  circulation  and  become  useless  even 
to  their  dictators  because  of  lack  of  influence. 


DICTATION  OF  EDITORIAL  POLICY 

Another  charge  frequently  brought  against  the  press,  some- 
what similar  to  the  one  just  discussed,  is  that  outside  financial 
interests  frequently  dictate  the  editorial  policy.  When  Bryan 
was  nominated  for  President  on  the  Democratic  ticket  in  1896, 
there  was  great  consternation  among  bankers  lest  his  election 
should  disrupt  existing  monetary  standards  and  ruin  the  coun- 
try. While  there  was  no  concerted  action,  independent  bankers 
holding  notes  of  newspapers  did  have  several  heart  to  heart  talks 
with  editors  and  proprietors  and  threatened  to  demand  im- 
mediate payment  of  financial  obligations  if  Bryan  was  supported. 
Be  it  said  to  the  credit  of  editors  who  conscientiously  believed  in 
the  silver  standard  that  they  told  bankers  "where  to  get  off," 
that  editorial  policies  were  not  subject  to  mortgage  or  demand 
notes  and  that  they  would  welcome  the  issue  if  it  were  presented. 
They  said  that  they  would  publish  the  facts  in  the  case  for  their 
readers  and  were  positive  that  they  could  raise  enough  money 
through  popular  subscription  to  continue  publication.  In  other 
instances  editors  informed  bankers  that  a  suit  to  collect  notes 
might  cause  a  reduction  in  the  size  of  their  newspapers,  but  they 
still  had  funds  enough  to  print  handbills  stating  the  reason  for 
change  in  form.  No  such  drastic  action,  however,  was  necessary, 
as  bankers  soon  saw  that  the  chief  asset  of  a  newspaper  was  its 
independence.  The  newspapers  which  did  change,  to  a  certain 
extent,  their  party  affiliations  did  so  of  their  own  free  will  be- 


440       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

cause  they  believed,  as  did  the  majority  of  the  voters  of  the 
country,  that  debased  currency  was  wrong  both  in  theory  and  in 
practice.  Numerous  editors  stood  by  this  principle  in  spite  of  the 
opposition  of  wealthy  owners  of  the  silver  mines  who  likewise 
tried  to  dictate  editorial  policies.  In  a  few  cases,  where  bankers 
did  insist  that  the  amount  of  indebtedness  of  newspapers  to  them 
should  be  reduced,  on  account  of  business  conditions,  they  were 
but  doing  what  they  were  requiring  of  all  borrowers  —  the 
reduction  in  loans. 

A  large  advertiser  in  a  certain  metropolitan  daily  did  with- 
draw his  advertising  because  the  paper  supported  Bryan  in  his 
presidential  aspirations,  but  later,  on  finding  that  he  was  losing 
business  on  account  of  the  absence  of  this  advertising,  he  tried 
to  have  it  inserted  again.  The  newspaper  informed  him  very 
plainly  in  words  to  the  following  effect:  "You  have  tried  to 
dictate  to  this  paper  through  a  threat  of  withdrawal  of  adver- 
tising. You  need  to  be  taught  a  lesson.  You  are  now  out,  and 
out  you  stay  for  one  year,  that  the  lesson  may  be  forcibly  im- 
pressed upon  your  memory."  Not  until  the  year  was  up  was  he 
allowed  to  resume  advertising. 

PITILESS   PUBLICITY 

Whether  newspapers  should  give  full  publicity  to  crime  has 
been  a  frequent  subject  of  discussion  in  periodical  literature.  No 
conclusive  evidence  has  ever  been  brought  forth  to  prove  that 
such  accounts  increase  the  amount  of  crime.  On  the  other  hand, 
only  the  astigmatic  or  myopic  person  fails  to  see  that  publicity 
is  a  most  decided  deterrent  of  crime.  E.  W.  Howe,  when  editor  of 
The  Globe,  of  Atchison,  Kansas,  expressed  this  idea  very  epi- 
grammatically,  "The  wages  of  sin  is  publicity";  Ralph  Waldo 
Emerson  knew  whereof  he  spoke  when  he  asserted,  "  Light  is  the 
great  policeman."  Unquestionably,  great  sorrow  is  brought  to 
wives,  children,  and  other  relatives  by  the  newspaper  accounts 
of  the  acts  of  criminals.  The  duty  of  the  newspaper,  however,  is 
plain:  it  must  protect  other  wives,  children,  and  relatives  who 
will  be  brought  to  grief  unless  all  forms  of  rascality  are  exposed 
and  perpetrators  of  crime  brought  to  justice.  Pitiless  publicity 
it  must  often  be,  but  it  is  never  heartless. 


JOURNALISM  OF  TO-DAY  441 

But  for  the  newspaper,  crime  and  corruption  would  often  ex-1 
ist  unmolested.  A  newspaper  is  a  megaphone  through  which  re-l 
formers  call  a  city  to  arms  and  improve  conditions.  Just  as  the 
physician  seeks  out  a  diseased  organ,  even  though  he  has  to  cut 
through  pus  and  false  flesh,  so  the  newspaper  which  lives  up  to 
its  duty  must  lay  bare  the  cankered  spots  of  the  body  politic. 
There  can  be  no  question  that  the  public  should  know  about  the 
vice  and  corruption  in  order  to  combat  the  evil.  J.  St.  Loe 
Strachey,  editor  of  The  London  Spectator,  thus  emphasized  this 
point  in  his  address  on  "Ethics  of  Journalism":  — 

It  is  good  to  know,  within  reasonable  limits,  the  evil  that  is  being 
done  in  order  that  we  may  lay  our  plans  and  bring  up  our  forces  to 
check  that  evil. 

When  the  Reverend  C.  M.  Sheldon  was  editing  The  Capital 
at  Topeka,  Kansas,  for  a  week  in  1900  as  Christ  would  have 
conducted  a  newspaper,  he  denned  news  as  "anything  in  the 
way  of  daily  events  that  the  public  ought  to  know  for  its  devel- 
opment and  power  in  a  We  of  righteousness"  and  therefore 
excluded  details  of  crime  from  the  columns.  In  commenting  on 
Dr.  Sheldon's  attitude  toward  stories  of  crime  The  World  of  New 
York  City  went  even  farther  than  Mr.  Strachey  in  the  matter  of 
such  publicity:  — 

It  is  painful,  but  it  is  a  fact  that  this  world  is  a  vast  battlefield 
between  good  and  evil.  This  being  the  case  it  is  of  the  very  highest 
importance  that  the  armies  of  the  good  should  have  the  completest, 
the  most  accurate  and  the  quickest  information  as  to  what  the  armies 
of  evil  are  about.  The  journalist  is  an  officer  in  the  Department  of 
Intelligence  of  the  Armies  of  the  Good.  And  whether  he  is  working 
for  his  pay  or  for  a  principle  or  for  both  or  without  any  conscious  motive 
whatever,  or  even  with  a  bad  motive,  so  long  as  he  remains  true  to  the 
fundamental  canon  of  his  creed  —  "Publicity!  Publicity!  Publicity!" 
he  is  serving  the  cause  of  the  good.  Whenever  from  any  motive,  good 
or  bad,  he  violates  that]  canon  he  is  a  traitor  to  that  cause,  a  giver  of 
aid  and  comfort  to  the  enemy. 

LEGITIMATE   SUPPRESSION 

The  "reasonable  limits"  mentioned  by  Mr.  Strachey  impose 
an  obligation  upon  the  press  not  to  fill  its  columns  with  filth  and 
fraud  for  which  there  is  no  justification.  In  this  respect  American 


442       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

papers  are  far  more  conservative  than  the  English:  not  a  single 
American  newspaper  begins  to  print  with  such  fullness  of  detail 
the  accounts  of  certain  crimes  and  divorce  trials  as  are  found  in 
the  great  London  papers.  Mr.  Strachey  commended  very  highly 
in  his  address  the  motto  of  The  New  York  Times,  "All  the  news 
that's  fit  to  print." 

Contrary  to  the  generally  accepted  opinion,  newspapers,  even 
the  most  sensational,  suppress  much  more  than  they  print  in  the 
matter  of  criminal  news.  If  suppression  would  serve  the  people 
as  a  whole  better,  the  story  of  crime  is  omitted.  One  illustration, 
taken  from  an  address  by  the  city  editor  of  a  great  metropolitan 
daily  before  a  state  city  editors'  association,  will  show  how  con- 
scientious is  the  city  editor  worthy  of  that  title :  — 

Since  I  have  been  in l  there  was  a  minister  in  one  of  the  larger 

churches  there,  a  high-salaried  man,  looked  up  to  by  his  congregation 
and  the  city  at  large  and  regarded  as  one  of  the  brightest  men  in  his 
denomination  in  the  world.  It  was  brought  to  the  ears  of  a  certain  city 
editor  —  not  myself  —  that  this  man  had  been  guilty  of  immoral 
practices,  and  men  were  put  to  work  to  run  the  stories  to  earth.  Those 
stories  were  proved,  and  if  they  had  been  printed  they  would  have  been 
the  sensation  of  the  nation  for  a  few  days.  But  they  never  got  beyond 
the  city  editor,  and  for  this  reason  —  he  knew  that  to  print  them 
would  disrupt  that  church,  break  up  several  families,  and  bring  sorrow 
to  hundreds  of  homes.  So  this  is  what  he  did.  The  minister  in  question 
was  called  in:  the  facts  were  shown  him  and  a  typewritten  agreement 
handed  him.  This  agreement  provided  that  he  was  to  resign  his  pulpit, 
quit  the  ministry  and  the  city  forever,  and  never  again  write  or  speak  a 
word  in  public.  The  minister  did  all  that.  There  was  no  publicity,  and 
the  church  was  saved,  although  shocked  by  the  minister's  sudden  re- 
tirement. To-day  he  is  living  on  a  farm,  a  quiet,  studious  man. 

Had  this  city  editor  suppressed  the  news,  without  the  in- 
fliction of  the  penalty  given,  he  would  have  been  false  to  his 
trust.  On  several  occasions  where  irregularities  of  conduct  in 
priest  and  rabbi  have  been  simply  suppressed,  offenders  have 
gone  to  other  parishes  only  to  disgrace  the  cloth  again.  Had  full 
publicity  been  given  in  the  first  instance,  results  would  have  been 
different  and  certain  newspapers  could  have  had  a  clearer  con- 
science. 

1  I  have  suppressed  the  name  of  the  city  for  the  same  reason  the  city  edi- 
tor suppressed  the  story.  —  J.  M.  L. 


JOURNALISM   OF  TO-DAY  443 

A  paper  full  of  the  items  suppressed  for  the  good  of  the  com- 
munity would  cause  a  greater  sensation  than  any  which  has  yet 
been  printed.  Even  the  most  sensational  newspapers  suppress 
many  stories  of  crime  in  the  interest  of  the  public  welfare.  News 
thus  suppressed  is  that  to  which  the  community  is  not  legiti- 
mately entitled  and  shows  not  the  weakness,  but  the  strength,  of 
the  American  press.  Newspapers  occasionally  make  mistakes, 
they  are  but  human  institutions,  but  on  the  whole,  they  serve 
the  community  well. 

PKESENT-DAY  ETHICS 

In  the  opinion  of  the  writer  the  ethics  of  journalism  of  to-day 
are  higher  than  those  of  any  other  profession.  What  the  press 
does  is  known  and  read  by  all  men.  It  does  not  print  one  edition 
for  one  class  of  subscribers  and  another  for  another.  The  only 
exception  to  this  rule  was  an  editor  in  a  Western  city  who  pub- 
lished a  somewhat  sensational  sheet.  After  the  regular  edition 
was  run  off,  he  used  to  "lift"  the  stories  of  crime  and  fill  the 
spaces  with  reports  of  acts  of  kindness,  sermons,  etc.  The  sec- 
ond edition  consisted  of  but  one  copy  —  the  copy  which  the 
editor  took  home  to  his  aged  mother.  With  this  single  exception, 
which  really  amounts  to  nothing  except  as  an  interesting  inci- 
dent, every  reader  knows  exactly  where  the  paper  stands.  It 
may  be  on  the  wrong  side,  but  it  is  publicly  labeled  so  that  no 
one  is  deceived.  What  other  profession  can  say  as  much? 

How  The  Bulletin,  of  San  Francisco,  California,  practically 
unsupported,  aroused  that  city  to  a  realization  of  the  corruption 
of  the  Ruef-Schmitz  machine  is  a  story  too  widely  known  to  be 
retold  here.  But  as  The  Bulletin  had  sent  Abraham  Ruef  to  jail 
and  then  asked  for  his  parole,  its  readers  could  not  understand 
the  attitude  of  the  paper  toward  the  convicted  grafter:  to  them 
it  seemed  paradoxical.  In  answer  to  a  correspondent  who  was 
indignant  that  The  Bulletin  should  ask  that  Ruef  be  set  free, 
Fremont  Older,  the  editor  of  The  Bulletin,  explained  his  change 
in  view  as  follows:  — 

I  have  asked  mercy  for  Ruef  because  I  feel  that  I  did  most  to  bring 
about  his  downfall.  The  Bulletin  fought  Ruef  long  before  the  rest  of 
San  Francisco  woke  up.  I  attacked  him  with  all  the  invective  I  could 


444       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

command  and  all  that  I  could  hire.  I  cartooned  him  in  stripes.  I  de- 
scribed him  on  the  way  to  the  penitentiary  at  San  Quentin. 

I  was  vindictive,  unscrupulous,  savage.  I  went  to  Washington  and 
enlisted  Heney  in  the  fight.  William  J.  Burns  came  and  I  persuaded 
Spreckles  to  help  us.  At  last,  after  years  of  a  man-hunting  and  man- 
hating  debauch,  Ruef  became  what  I  had  longed  and  dreamed  that  he 
might  become  —  a  convict. 

Then  I  said  to  myself:  "You've  got  him.  He's  in  stripes.  He  is  help- 
less, beaten,  chained.  You've  won.  How  do  you  like  your  victor}7? 
How  do  you  enjoy  the  picture  you  have  painted?  Every  savage  in- 
stinct in  your  nature  is  expressed  in  the  canvas." 

Well,  my  soul  revolted.  I  thought  over  my  own  life,  the  many  un- 
worthy things  I  have  done  to  others,  the  injustice,  the  wrongs,  I  have 
been  guilty  of,  the  human  hearts  I  have  wantonly  hurt,  the  sorrow  I 
have  caused,  the  half  truths  I  have  told,  the  mitigating  truths  I  have 
withheld,  the  lies  I  have  allowed  to  go  undenied.  I  see  myself  now 
stripped  of  all  sham  and  pretense  and  self-righteousness,  holding  the 
key  to  another  man's  cell.  If  society  will  let  me,  I  want  to  unlock  that 
barred  door  and  for  the  rest  of  my  life  try  to  get  nearer  the  spirit  of 
Christ. 

In  a  letter  to  the  writer  of  this  book,  Mr.  Older  enlarged  still 
further  upon  this  change:  — 

I  thought  when  I  wrote  the  letter,  and  I  think  now,  that  we  all  ap- 
proached the  graft  situation  in  the  wrong  spirit.  We  believed  that  there 
was  only  one  way  to  put  an  end  to  municipal  corruption  and  that  was 
by  discovering  legal  evidence  against  the  grafters,  indict  them,  try  them 
in  the  courts,  convict  them  and  send  them  to  the  penitentiary.  We  did 
not  know  we  were  dealing  with  a  disease  and  that  there  was  no  more 
occasion  for  hatred  and  denunciation  than  there  would  have  been  if  the 
city  had  become  infected  with  a  contagious  malady,  and  we  had  led  a 
crusade  to  eliminate  it.  But  in  those  days  none  of  us  had  any  doubt  that 
the  jail  was  the  only  cure.  That  was  because  we  had  no  background  of 
human  experience.  We  believed  that  men  were  either  definitely  good  or 
definitely  bad,  and  that  men  deliberately  decided  to  be  either  good  or 
bad,  just  as  a  young  man  would  choose  a  career.  So  we  proceeded  on  that 
theory  and  expended  vast  sums  of  money,  time,  and  energy  in  trying  to 
put  the  grafters  in  prison.  It  happened  that  the  men  who  had  been  buy- 
ing privileges  of  Schmitz  and  Ruef  were  wealthy,  and  being  wealthy 
were  influential,  highly  respected,  and  belonged  to  our  most  exclusive 
social  circles.  Naturally,  they  did  n't  relish  the  idea  of  wearing  stripes 
in  a  penitentiary.  So  they  fought  back  hard  and  the  conflict  developed 
into  a  bitter  war  which  lasted  several  years. 

If  we  had  used  the  money,  time,  and  energy  in  making  a  quiet  in- 
vestigation of  the  graft  in  our  city,  and  had  not  stopped  as  soon  as  we 


JOURNALISM   OF  TO-DAY  445 

thought  we  had  sufficient  evidence  to  convict,  the  work  would  have  been 
more  valuable.  I  think  we  could  have  secured  more  complete  confessions 
from  those  implicated  if  we  had  given  them  to  understand  that  prison 
punishment  would  only  be  resorted  to  in  the  event  of  their  withholding 
any  part  of  their  corrupt  activities.  We  could  then  have  made  a  com- 
plete expose*  which  would  have  been  educational,  and  would  have  had 
tremendous  value  to  those  who  are  interested  in  making  our  civic  life 
cleaner  and  our  methods  more  efficient.  But  we  did  the  best  we  knew 
at  the  time.  It  was  certainly  a  liberal  education  for  me.  Some  of  the 
others  still  fail  to  see  it  as  I  do.  They  cling  doggedly  to  the  jail  and  the 
prison  as  the  only  cure  for  evil. 

UNFAIRNESS   OF   PAPERS 

Still  another  charge  brought  against  the  American  newspaper 
is  that  it  seldom,  if  ever,  prints  a  speech  of  any  length  unless 
delivered  by  the  President  of  the  United  States  or  some  other 
very  distinguished  official.  Attention  is  called  to  the  fact  that 
the  report  often  contains  nothing  except  the  startling,  foolish, 
or  inflammatory  utterances  of  the  speaker.  A  contrast  is  drawn 
between  the  newspapers  of  to-day  and  those  of  Greeley's  time 
when  speeches  were  often  reported  at  length.  Such  critics,  how- 
ever, fail  to  make  a  comparison  of  the  sizes  of  the  newspapers 
printed  during  these  periods.  The  average  New  York  newspaper 
is  not  much  larger  to-day  than  it  was  then,  except  for  advertis- 
ing columns  —  often  it  has  fewer  columns  devoted  to  the  news. 
Yet  the  number  of  men  who  make  speeches  in  that  city  has 
multiplied  to  such  an  extent  that  a  detailed  report  is  now  quite 
an  impossibility.  Very  often,  the  words  quoted  of  the  speaker 
constitute  the  only  new  thing  given  in  the  speech,  devoted  for 
the  most  part  to  generalizations  often  much  better  expressed  by 
others.  The  reading  public,  like  the  men  of  Athens,  in  Paul's 
time,  is  chiefly  interested  in  the  new  thing  and  unless  the  new 
thing  be  said,  readers  prefer  newspaper  stories  of  deeds  rather 
than  those  of  speech. 

In  discussing  a  complaint  of  Professor  Scott  Nearing  that  he 
had  not  been  treated  fairly  by  the  newspapers,  The  World,  of 
New  York,  spoke  as  follows  in  an  editorial:  — 

It  is  always  a  pleasure  to  discuss  journalism  with  an  honest  man  who 
knows  nothing  about  it.  Professor  Scott  Nearing,  for  example,  believes 
that  most  newspapers  are  biased  or  corrupt  because  they  are  not  dis- 


446       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

posed  to  embellish  their  pages  with  his  long  and  not  very  convincing 
arguments  against  measures  for  national  defense. 

Nothing  in  this  world  is  easier  than  for  an  excited  individual  to 
imagine  that  his  failure  to  make  a  profound  impression  is  due  to  some- 
body's prejudice  or  dishonesty.  Many  a  humbug  gets  great  space  in 
newspapers  —  for  a  season.  Many  a  man  of  one  idea  figures  briefly  in 
the  big  headlines.  But  many  a  person  profoundly  in  earnest  is  taken  up 
and  quickly  set  down  again  because  it  is  found  that,  after  all,  he  has  no 
true  message. 

There  is  hardly  a  day  that  does  not  develop  hi  some  line  of  thought  a 
man  or  woman,  generally  young,  who  has  discovered  that  the  inherited 
experience  of  the  human  race  in  its  social  and  political  relations  is 
worthless.  If  the  humdrum  newspapers  which  deal  in  their  ignorant 
way  with  life  as  it  is  and  has  been  were  to  accept  all  these  prophets  at 
their  self-valuations,  this  world  would  be  more  of  a  bedlam  than  it  is. 

Truth  sometimes  has  to  fight  for  a  hearing,  but  never  hopelessly. 
Folly  and  presumption  are  much  more  likely  to  receive  hasty  atten- 
tion. In  most  cases  it  is  when  folly  and  presumption  have  been  found 
out  and  dropped  that  we  hear  of  the  unfriendliness  of  the  press.  Truth 
recognized  and  established  presents  no  resolutions  of  thanks  and  throws 
no  bouquets.  Truth  is  the  great  silencer. 

Professor  Nearing  speaks  of  journalism  as  a  game,  which  it  is  not. 
Journalism  is  about  as  serious  a  profession  as  sober  men  ever  engaged 
in.  It  has  its  eye  upon  the  past  for  instruction  and  upon  the  future  for 
inspiration  guided  by  that  instruction.  We  wish  that  Professor  Nearing 
and  all  other  reformers  who  are  in  a  hurry  could  be  similarly  actuated. 

POLITICAL  ADVERTISING 

A  criticism  brought  against  the  newspaper  is  that  it  ought  not 
to  allow  the  insertion  of  advertisements  which  advocate  policies 
directly  opposed  to  those  stated  in  the  editorial  columns.  Es- 
pecially is  this  true  of  political  advertising  inserted  by  the  party 
whose  principles  are  not  advocated  by  the  paper..  The  justice  of 
this  charge  is  without  foundation.  It  is  a  gopA  thing  for  a  Re- 
publican to  read  in  his  party  paper  the  advertisements  of  the 
Democratic  Party.  The  advertisement,  being  officially  prepared, 
is  positive  assurance  to  him  that  its  contents  have  not  been  col- 
ored or  warped  by  the  editorial  policies  of  the  paper:  it  is  a  yard- 
stick by  which  he  may  measure  the  accuracy  of  the  news  re- 
ports of  the  rival  party.  On  the  basis  of  sound  advertising  theory, 
political  advertising  should  be  given,  not  to  papers  of  like  policy, 
but  to  opposition  papers;  the  advertising  manager  of  a  paper 


JOURNALISM   OF  TO-DAY  447 

with  Republican  leanings  presented  the  case  squarely  when  he 
said  to  the  manager  of  a  Democratic  press  bureau  who  objected 
to  the  editorial  policies  of  the  paper  in  question:  "  Whom  are  you 
trying  to  reach,  through  your  political  advertising,  those  who 
are  going  to  vote  for  Wilson,  or  those  who  are  now  thinking  of 
voting  against  him?  When  you  have  reached  your  decision, 
remember  this  fact,  our  paper  guarantees  a  larger  circulation 
among  those  who  are  now  opposing  Wilson  than  any  other  paper 
in  the  city."  To  the  credit  of  this  Democratic  press  bureau,  be  it 
said  that  it  used  large  space  in  the  Republican  sheet.  Political 
advertising  should  be  inserted  not  solely  to  reward  papers  for 
party  allegiance,  but  to  spread  partisan  doctrine  where  it  will 
do  the  most  good;  it  is  for  this  purpose  that  people  contribute 
funds  to  the  campaign  expenses  of  the  great  parties.  It  must  be 
confessed  that  in  the  past  much  of  this  political  advertising  has 
been  too  personal  and  too  bitter  to  be  effective  among  intelligent 
newspaper  readers.  More  and  more,  however,  political  adver- 
tising is  being  prepared  on  the  same  sound  principles  as  those 
which  govern  general  advertising. 

EDITORIAL   PROSTITUTION 

Another  so-called  weakness  of  modern  journalism  is  that  edi- 
torial writers  must  on  special  occasions  write  opinions  not  be- 
lieved to  be  just  and  right  because  the  chief-of -staff  insists  that 
these  policies  are  those  of  the  newspaper.  Tiffany  Blake,  chief 
editorial  writer  of  The  Chicago  Tribune,  put  the  case  in  its  proper 
light  when  he  gave  this  justification  of  such  work.  He  thought, 
when  a  writer  was,  on  the  whole,  in  sympathy  with  the  editorial 
policies,  he  might,  in  minor  cases,  support  certain  measures  with 
which  he  did  not  agree.  Such  conduct,  Mr.  Blake  pointed  out, 
was  in  keeping  with  the  religious  and  political  life  of  any  in- 
dividual; a  man  in  joining  a  political  party  does  not  necessarily 
imply  that  he  supports  every  plank  of  the  platform,  but  that  he 
thinks  that  this  party  comes  the  nearest  to  agreeing  with  his 
views  about  the  questions  of  the  day;  a  man  joining  a  church  or 
religious  sect  may  not  agree  with  every  article  of  the  creed,  but 
he  chooses  to  become  a  member  because  this  religious  denomina- 
tion in  its  larger  doctrines  favors  his  views  on  matters  of  ethics 


448       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

and  spiritual  welfare.  As  a  matter  of  practice,  however,  an  edi- 
torial writer  on  the  larger  dailies  seldom  has  the  disagreeable 
task  of  writing  what  he  does  not  believe.  A  question  is  thrashed 
out  at  the  editorial  council  and  after  a  decision  has  been  reached 
as  to  where  the  paper  shall  stand,  the  writing  of  the  editorial  is 
given  to  the  man  to  whom  the  subject  most  appeals  because  ex- 
perience has  shown  that  he  can  generally  produce  the  most  forci- 
ble and  convincing  appeal  on  the  subject. 

SIGNED  EDITORIALS 

This  practice  in  editorial  offices  shows  how  impossible  are  the 
recommendations  of  William  Jennings  Bryan  and  others  that 
editorial  articles  should  be  signed  by  the  names  of  their  writers. 
In  thrashing  out  a  problem  at  the  editorial  council  different 
phases  of  a  subject  are  presented  by  various  members  of  the 
staff.  The  man  who  writes  the  editorial  frequently  accepts  ideas 
from  every  member  of  the  staff  hi  his  presentation  of  the  subject, 
and  he  would  be  guilty  of  plagiarism  if  he  should  attach  his  name 
to  the  editorial.  The  editorial  "  we"  is  the  real  author  of  the  edi- 
torial :  the  staff,  through  an  individual  writer,  has  spoken  for  the 
paper.  Only  where  the  editorial  staff  consists  of  a  single  member 
would  there  be  justification  for  using  Mr.  Bryan's  suggestion  of 
signed  editorials. 

CHARTING   THE   NEWS 

A  distinguished  educator  went  over  a  certain  New  York  paper 
systematically  for  three  months  during  which  time  he  charted 
the  news  as  follows:  demoralizing,  2295  items;  unwholesome, 
1684;  trivial,  2100;  worth-while,  3900  —  or  thirty-nine  per  cent, 
of  the  total.  The  New  York  World  thought  that  the  educator 
made  out  a  fairly  good  case  for  the  newspapers;  that  thirty-nine 
per  cent,  of  worth-while  news  was  up  to  the  average  quality  of 
achievement  in  most  human  activities  such  as  the  preaching  of 
sermons,  painting  of  pictures,  writing  of  novels,  or  what-not. 

Other  newspapers  thought  that  the  newspaper  average  of 
worth-while  items  was  higher  than  thirty-nine  per  cent.  The 
Evening  Tribune  of  Providence,  Rhode  Island,  expressed  its  views 
as  follows:  — 


JOURNALISM   OF  TO-DAY  449 

Nobody  familiar  with  the  legitimate  objects  of  a  newspaper,  the 
ends  which  it  very  properly  endeavors  to  serve,  would  argue  that  all 
items  that  are  demoralizing  or  unwholesome  in  the  sense  that  they  have 
to  do  with  the  misconduct  of  human  beings,  with  murder  or  robbery 
or  arson  or  with  worse,  if  possible,  should  be  entirely  ignored.  It  has 
been  asserted,  and  with  truth,  surely,  that  it  will  be  a  sorry  day  for  this 
or  any  other  country  when  newspapers  are  forced  to  regard  what  is 
unwholesome  or  demoralizing  as  so  commonplace,  so  much  a  matter  of 
course,  as  to  be  undeserving  of  treatment  as  a  matter  of  news,  happen- 
ings not  only  of  interest,  but  doings  with  which  all  adult  persons  should 
be  made  acquainted.  There  would  speedily  be  formed  a  very  false  and 
wholly  misleading  conception  of  actual  conditions  of  society  and  the 
state  of  [the  body  politic  as  it  is,  were  all  reference  to  what  is  demoraliz- 
ing or  unwholesome  suppressed.  Comparisons  by  which  progress  in 
civilization  and  moral  advance  could  be  measured  would  be  out  of  the 
question,  of  course.  Such  an  ostrich-like  procedure  or  departure  would 
leave  us  in  utter  ignorance  of  existence  and  its  environments;  of  the  life 
that  is  being  lived;  it  would  tempt  us  to  plume  ourselves  on  virtues  that 
we  do  not  possess;  on  civic  righteousness  which  is  wanting.  As  for  the 
trivial  things  of  life,  who  shall  draw  the  line  between  the  important  and 
the  unimportant?  A  very  wise  philosopher  has  declared  that  "  under 
God's  mysterious  dispensation  there  are  no  trifles." 

LOCAL  INFLUENCE   OF  READERS 

Several  writers  on  journalism  have  pointed  to  Charleston, 
South  Carolina,  as  an  example  of  where  newspapers  were  vir- 
tually owned  and  controlled  by  a  powerful  social  organization. 
Attention  has  been  repeatedly  called  to  how  the  newspapers  of 
that  city  never  report  the  balls  and  social  activities  of  the  St. 
Cecilia  Society.  Critics  have  overlooked  the  important  fact  that 
newspaper  readers  have  moulded  journalism  in  that  city  where 
there  is  a  resentment  against  publicity,  not  only  about  the  balls 
of  the  St.  Cecilia  Society,  but  also  about  weddings  and  other 
social  events.  Charleston  newspaper  readers  have  spoken  in  no 
uncertain  terms  about  these  matters.  No  evidence  has  yet  been 
produced  that  the  newspapers  of  Charleston  have  suppressed 
news  to  which  the  public  was  legitimately  entitled  and  for  which 
there  could  be  any  difference  of  opinion  about  its  affecting  the 
welfare  of  the  city. 


450       HISTORY  OF  AMERICAN  JOURNALISM 

CONCLUSION 

The  assertion  has  been  made  by  publicists  that  if  the  European 
countries  had  had  newspapers  like  those  found  hi  America  there 
would  never  have  been  the  Great  War  of  the  World.  Be  that  as 
it  may,  there  can  be  no  question  that  the  permanence  of  the 
American  Republic  is  linked  by  inseparable  bonds  to  the  inde- 
pendence of  the  press.  No  man  has  seen  this  fact  more  clearly 
than  ex-president  Charles  William  Eliot,  of  Harvard  University. 
His  conclusion,  not  that  of  one  intimately  associated  with  the 
profession,  but  rather  that  of  one  who  sees  American  life  in  all 
its  ramifications,  may  well  be  the  concluding  paragraph  of  this 
book:  — 

Another  new  and  effective  bulwark  of  state  is  to  be  found  in  the  ex- 
treme publicity  with  which  all  American  'activities  are  carried  on. 
Many  people  are  in  the  habit  of  complaining  bitterly  of  the  intrusion 
of  the  newspaper  reporter  into  every  nook  and  corner  of  the  State  and 
even  into  the  privacy  of  the  home;  but  in  this  extreme  publicity  is 
really  to  be  found  a  new  means  of  social,  industrial,  and  governmental 
reform  and  progress.  There  are  many  exaggerations,  perversions,  and 
inaccuracies  in  this  publicity;  but  on  the  whole  it  is  a  beneficent  and  a 
new  agency  for  the  promotion  of  the  public  welfare.  ...  So  new  is  this 
force  in  the  world  that  many  people  do  not  yet  trust  it,  or  perceive  its 
immense  utility.  In  case  of  real  industrial  -grievances  and  oppressions, 
publicity  would  be  by  far  the  quickest  and  surest  means  of  cure  — 
vastly  more  effective  for  all  just  ends  than  secret  combinations  of 
either  capitalists  or  laborers.  The  newspapers  which  are  the  ordinary 
instruments  of  this  publicity,  are  as  yet  very  imperfect  instruments, 
much  of  their  work  being  done  so  hastily  -and  so  cheaply  as  to  pre- 
clude accuracy;  but  as  a  means  of  publicity. they  visibly  improve  from 
decade  to  decade  and  taken  together  with  -the  magazines  and  the  con- 
troversial pamphlet,  they  shed  more  light  on  the  social,  industrial,  and 
political  life  of  the  people  of  the  United  States  than  was  ever  shed  be- 
fore on  the  doings  and  ways  of  any  people.  •  This  force  is  distinctly  new 
within  the  century,  and  it  affords  a  new  and  strong  guarantee  for  the 
American  Republic. 


THE   END 


INDEX 


INDEX 


Abbot,  Willis  J.,  412 
Abell,  A.  S.,  192 
Abolition  paper,  152,  262 
Abominations,  Tariff  of,  148 
Accuracy  and  Fair  Play,  Bureau  of, 

401 

Acta  Diurna,  3 
Adams,  Abijah,  102 
Adams,  Isaac,  160 
Adams,  James,  56 
Adams,  John,  105,  132 
Adams,  John  Q.,  149 
Adams,  Osborn,  232 
Adams,  Samuel,  409 
Adams,  S.  H.,  226 
Adams,  W.  L.,  238 
Adless  daily  paper,  408 
Advertisements,  Civil  War  Period,  312 
Colonial  Period,  70 
liquors,  lotteries,  etc., 

of,  332 
news  in,  74 
political,  446 
"  Rags  Wanted,"  97 
Revolutionary     Peri- 
od, 93 

tax  on,  110,  112,  346 
Advertiser,  Albany,  135 

Bache's  General,  103,  104 
Baltimore,  94 
Boston  Daily,  155 
Boston  Daily  (Polar  Star), 

120 

Charleston,  92 
Independent,  55 
Louisville,  143 
Mercantile,  142,  159 
Milwaukee,  231 
National,  142 
New  York  Commercial,  134, 

321 

New  York  Daily,  120 
Pennsylvania    Daily,     118, 

155 

Portland  Daily,  237 
South  Carolina  General,  119 
Advertising,   agency,  74 

Civil  War  Period,  312 
honest  laws,  394 
increase  in,  355 


Advertising,  medicinal,  72,  225,  390 

newspaper,  355,  390,  392 
Alabama,  early  papers,  180 
Albright,  Samuel  J.,  246 
Alien  and  Sedition  Laws,  102 
AUa  California,  337 
American,  Nashville,  379 

New  York  (Hearst),  373 
New  York  (King),  161 
Antony,  2 
Archer,  Thomas,  6 
Argus,  Albany,  150,  360 

Denver,  252 

Memphis,  289 

New  York,  103 

Oregonian,  238 

Portland,  147,  148 
Arizona,  early  papers,  249 
Arkansas,  early  papers,  182  "* 
Army  Organs,  90,  261,  301,  426 
Associated  Press,  343,  384,  415 

Bailey,  Francis,  90 
Baker,  N.  A.,  252,  254 
Bangs,  Samuel,  183 
Bank,  United  States,  156 
Banner,  Abbeville,  282 
Nashville,  335 
Beach,  Moses  S.,  268,  276 
Beach,  Moses  Y.,  188 
Bee,  Hudson,  143 

New  London,  103,  143 
New  Orleans,  289 
New  York,  189,  224 
Omaha,  246,  337 
Beginnings  in  States  and  Territories: 

Alabama,  180 

Arizona,  249 

Arkansas,  182 

California,  239 

Colorado,  250 

Connecticut,  51 

Delaware,  56 

Dist.  of  Columbia,  172 

Florida,  165 

Georgia,  58 

Idaho,  252 

Illinois,  181 

Indiana,  177 

Iowa,  234 


454 


INDEX 


Beginnings  in  States  and  Territories: 

Kansas,  232 

Kentucky,  169 

Louisiana,  165 

Maine,  167 

Maryland,  45 

Massachusetts,  17-29 

Michigan,  179 

Minnesota,  240 

Mississippi,  177 

Missouri,  178 

Montana,  253 

Nebraska,  245 

Nevada,  248 

New  Hampshire,  55 

New  Jersey,  59 

New  Mexico,  233 

New  York,  36 

North  Carolina,  53 

North  Dakota,  255 

Ohio,  174 

Oklahoma,  235 

Oregon,  236 

Pennsylvania,  31 

Rhode  Island,  48 

South  Carolina,  47 

South  Dakota,  246 

Tennessee,  174 

Texas,  183 

Utah,  242 

Vermont,  166 

Virginia,  50 

Washington,  244 

West  Virginia,  171 

Wisconsin,  231 

Wyoming,  254 

Beginnings  of  daily  journalism,  118 
Bellow,  A.  H.,  339 
Benjamin,  Park,  198 
Bennett,  James  Gordon,  193,  274,  302, 

304 

Benton,  Thomas  H.,  158,  179 
Biddle,  Nicholas,  156 
Bigelow,  Horatio,  183 
"Black  Journalism,"  143 
Blaine,  James  G.,  169,  363 
Blair,  Francis  P.,  157,  222,  283 
Blake,  Henry  Ingraham,  154,  264 
Blanket  Sheets,  162 
Borden,  Gail,  216 
Boston,  First  Daily,  120 
Bowles,  Samuel,  276,  319,  351,  402 
Boycott,  New  York  Tribune,  362 
Boyd,  Adam,  55 
Boys,  News,  87,  200,  272,  307 
Bradford,  Andrew,  31 
Bradford,  John,  169 


Bradford,  William,  31,  36,  39,  62,  65 

Brisbane,  Arthur,  364,  373,  381,  429 

Broadsides,  8 

Brooker,  William,  29 

Brooks,  James  G.;  145,  169 

Bruce,  John  P.,  254' 

Bryan,  William  J.,  363,  439 

Bryant,  William  Cullen,  136,  276,  321, 

340 

Buchanan,  John,  253 
Buckingham,  Joseph  Tinker,  26,  132 
Buel,  Jesse,  150 
Bulletin,  Boston,  185 

Philadelphia,  336 

San  Francisco,  337,  379,  443 
Bulletin  Boards,  3,  159 
Bulls,  Papal,  4    , 
Burk,  John,  120 
Burr,  Aaron,  138 
Butler,  J.  S.,  252 
Butler,  T.  J.,  252 
Butter,  Nathaniel,  6 
Byers,  William  N.,  251 

Cselius,  3 

Csesars  as  journalists,  3   . 

Calhoun,  John,  152,  157,  173,  227 

California,  Daily  Alta,  379 

California,  editions,  263 

California,  early  papers,  239 

California  journalism,  263 

Call,  San  Francisco,  337 

Campaign  organs,  208 

Campbell,  John,  17,  21,  70 

Canal  Record,  408 

Capital  Topeka,  413 

Cartoons,  78,  84,  131,  141,  302,  303, 

304,  318,  321,  362 
Censorship  of  press,  28,  29Q.J23 
Census  Reports,  228~"" 
Cent,  Philadelphia,  186 
Centinel,  Massachusetts,  109 
Charles,  William,  141 
Charless,  Joseph,  178 
Charleston  journalism,  449 
Cherokee  newspapers,  235 
Chicago  Day  Book,  408 
Chicago,  newspapers  after  fire,  342 

journalism,  374 
Childs,  Francis,  120 

George  W.,  192 
China,  conditions  in,  7 
Christian  Science  Monitor,  414 
Chronicle,  American,  66 

New  York,  38 

New  York  Morning,  138 

Pennsylvania,  44 


INDEX 


455 


Chronicle,  Washington,  336 
Wilmington,  66 
San  Francisco,  337,  360,  379 
Church,  W.  C.,  268 
Cicero,  3 

Circulation,  statement,  95,  142 
Citizen,  Vicksburg,  307 
Civic  societies,  influence  of,  400 
Civil  War  Period,  285 

reactions,  318 
Clay,  Henry,  222 
Claypoole,  118 
Clemens,  S.  E.,  248 
Cleveland,  Grover,  362 
Coleman,  William,  107,  135 
Collins,  Isaac,  60 
Colonial  Period,  62 
Colorado,  early  papers  in,  250 
Colton,  Walter,  239 
Combination  of  publishers,  114,  275, 

386 

Connecticut,  early  papers  in,  61 
Conrad,  R.  T.,  267 
Contents  of  first  daily  paper,  118 
Continent,  New  York,  373 
Cooper,  J.  F.,  221 
Cooperative  newspapers,  339 
Copperhead  press,  285 
Cotten,  G.  B.,  183 
Country  weeklies,  304 
Courant,  Connecticut,  52 

Constitutional,  84 

Delaware,  57 

Hartford,  355 

New  England,  29,  33,  48 
"Court  Paper,"  173 
Courier,  Charleston,  139,  334 
Courier-Journal,  Louisville,  340,  379 
Craig,  D.  H.,  217,  276 
Craske,  Charles,  311 
Crime,  treatment,  223,  441,  449 
Cummings,  Alexander,  267,  269 
Curry,  George  L.,  237 

Dailies,  first  in  America,  118 

oldest  in  New  York,  134 
Daily  Acts,  3 

Daily,  contents  of  first,  118 
Dana,  Charles  Anderson,  210,  321,  325, 

374 

Dana,  Paul,  374 
Davis,  James,  63 
Davis,  Jefferson,  261 
Day,  Benjamin  Henry,  187 
DeForeest,  Henry,  39 
Delaware,  early  papers,  56 
Denver,  early  papers,  400 


Departments  for  women,  392 

Department  Stores,  influence  of,  431 

District  of  Columbia,  172 

Dix,  Dorothy,  389 

Draft  riots,  286 

Draper,  John,  25 

Draper,  Richard,  25 

Duncan,  Matthew,  181 

Dunlop,  George,  374,  411 

Eagle,  Brooklyn,  220,  370 
Eddy,  Mary  Baker,  414 
Edes,  B.,  85 
Edes,  P.,  168 
Editorial,  changes,  100 

combats,  212    v 

corrections,  402 

giants,  276  - 

leading  of  period,  294 

Page,  influenced  by  adver- 
tisers, 439 

Page,  revival  of,  422  " 

prayer  meeting,  268    ~^ 

prostitution,  447 

of  secession,  296 

signed,  448 

Editors  jailed,  41,  55,  102,  148 
Editors  of  West,  378 
Eliot,  Charles  William,  450 
Ellis,  Albert,  232 
Emancipator,  152 
Embree,  Elihu,  152 
English,  W.  B.,  192 
Enquirer,  Cincinnati,  378 
Ethics,  newspaper,  388,  390,  413,  441, 

443 

European  War,  effect  of,  419 
Evasion  of  law,  1 1 
Evening  papers,  341,  382,  421 
Examiner,  San  Francisco,  337,  360 
Exorbitant  war  rates,  307 
Expresses,  pigeon,  217 

pony,  219,  252,  258 

steam,  212 
Extras,  first,  24 

sporting,  382 
war,  93,  367 
Exposures  by  newspapers,  239 
Extramural  activities  of  newspapers, 
357,  377 

Farley,  Samuel,  66 

Feature  paper,  first,  133 

Federalist,  The,  121 

Federal  supervision,  226,  394,  396 

Feminizing  newspaper,  389 

Fenno,  John,  122 


456 


INDEX 


Ferber,  Thomas,  56 

Field,  David  Dudley,  326 

Fleet,  Thomas,  69 

Florida,  early  papers,  165 

Forney,  J.  W.,  276,  336 

Fowle,  Darnel,  55 

Franco-Prussian  War,  328 

Franklin,  Benjamin,  30,  32,  34,  44,  47, 

51,  65,  68,  75,  78,  94,  102 
Franklin,  James,  29,  48,  72 
Free  postage,  75 

Free  Press,  Detroit,  246,  338,  379,  412 
Freedom  of  press,  31,  127,  450 
Freeman,  F.  K.,  323 
Freeman,  R.  L.,  323 
French-English  papers,  165 
Freneau,  Philip,  88,  90,  92,  106,  113, 

120,  122 

Fresh-air  funds,  358 
Frontier  Index,  322 
Frothingham,  David,  103 

Gaine,  Hugh,  87,  93,  98 
Gales,  Joseph,  Jr.,  173,  223 
Gales,  Joseph,  Sr.,  106 
Garrison,  William  Lloyd,  152,  186 
Gazette,  popularity  of  name,  44 
Gazette,  Albany,  97 

Arkansas,  182 

Boston,  22,  29,  72,  78,  85,  92, 
98,  110,  141 

Charleston  City,  154 

Cincinnati,  143,  276 

Connecticut,  51 

Delaware,  56 

Detroit,  180 

Falmouth,  167 

Florida,  165 

Game's  New  York,  87,  98 

Georgia,  58 

Halifax,  84 

Hudson,  97 

Illinois,  181 

Indiana,  178 

Kentucky,  169 

Knoxville,  174 

Louisiana,  166,  282 

Maine,  168 

Maryland,  45,  83,  97 

Massachusetts,  26 

Mississippi,  177 

Missouri,  178 

Nashville,  174 

National,  105,  122 

New  Hampshire,  55,  95 

New  Jersey,  59,  98 

New  London,  52 


Gazette,  New  York,  32,  36,  65,  74,  78 

New  York  Daily,  115,  122,  141, 
159 

North  Carolina,  53,  97 

Parker's  New  York,  67 

Pennsylvania,  34,    65,    67,    71, 
75,  78,  84 

Pittsburg,  147,  338 

Porcupine,  101 

Providence,  49,  92,  98 

Rhode  Island,  48 

Rivington's   New    York   Loyal, 
88,95 

Royal,  48 

Royal  Georgia,  58 

Royal  South  Carolina,  91 

South  Carolina,  47,  48,  73,  78, 
83 

State  of  Georgia,  58 

Tennessee,  174 

Texas,  183 

Vermont,  103,  106 

Virginia,  50,  78 

Washington,  172 

Wheeling,  172 
Georgia,  early  papers,  58 
Gerrymander,  cartoon,  131 
Gibson,  G.  R.,  234 
Globe,  Boston,  438 
St.  Paul,  379 
Washington,  157,  222,  227 
Globe-Democrat,  St.  Louis,  379 
Goddard,  Morrill,  380 
Goddard,  William,  49,  94,  96 
Gold,  news  of,  262 
Government  newspaper,  408 
regulations,  389 

Grant,  U.  S.,  325,  327,  345,  361 
Greeley,  Horace,   148,  186,  207,  209, 
213,  273,  276,  277,  283,  295,  302,  312, 
320,  323,  352,  404 
Green,  Bartholomew,  24 
Green,  Jonas,  45 
Green,  Samuel,  8 
Green,  Timothy,  2d,  52 
Guthrie  Get-up,  236 

Hadley,  Arthur  T.,  429 
Hale,  David,  219 
Hale,  Samuel,  49 
Hall,  David,  34 
Hall,  Edmund,  45 
Hallock,  Gerard,  276 
Hamilton,  Alexander,  122 
Hammond,  Charles,  143 
Hammond,  John  Hayes,  250 
Harris,  Benjamin,  9,  15 


INDEX 


457 


Harrison,  William  Henry,  173,  208,  220 

Hartford  Convention,  141 

Haskell,  D.  M.,  186 

Hay,  John,  342 

Headlines,  93,  367,  422 

Hearst,  William  Randolph,  337,  372 

He,iss,  J.  P.,  261 

Henry,  Robert,  171 

Herald,  Boston,  191,  262 

Chicago,  375 

New  York,  193,  262,  263,  287, 
311,  318,  342,  356,  345,  357 

Omaha,  246 

San  Francisco,  263 
High-tariff  papers,  146 
Hildreth,  108 
Hill,  Isaac,  149 
Hitchcock,  G.  M.,  246 
Holly,  Alanson,  231 
Holt,  Charles,  103 
Holt,  Hamilton,  409 
Holt,  John,  52,  85,  88,  95 
Hough,  George,  167 
Howells,  William  Dean,  210,  338 
Hudson,  Frederic,  200 
Hunter,  51 

Hurlburt,  William  H.,  370 
Hyde,  William,  338 

Ice  funds,  357 

Idaho,  early  papers,  252 

Illinois,  early  papers,  181 

Indian  papers,  232,  235 

Indiana,  early  papers,  177 

Inks,  printing,  63,  308,  386 

Innovations  of  New  York  Herald,  198 

Iowa,  early  papers,  234 

Irving,  John,  138 

Irving,  Peter,  138 

Irving,  Washington,  138 

Irving,  William,  138 

Isler,  Peter,  171 

Jackson,  Andrew,  149,  162,  173,  189, 

193,  227,  279,  340 
Jay,  John,  121 

Jefferson,  Thomas,  105,  112,  122 
Jennings,  L.  J.,  329 
Johnson,  James,  58 
Jones,  George,  270 
Journal,  Boston,  259,  263,  336 

Chicago,  265,  281,  342 

Commerce,  of,  200 

Connecticut,  62 

Dayton,  378 

Detroit,  412 

Freeman's,  90 


Journal,  Holt's  New  York,  85,  88 
Maryland,  94,  96 
Milwaukee,  360 
Minneapolis,  300,  379 
New  Hampshire,  133 
New  Jersey,  61,  87 
New  York  Evening,  367 
New-York  Weekly,  38,  43 
Ohio  State,  338 
Pennsylvania,  82,  90 
Providence,  146,  425 
South  Carolina  Weekly,  47 
Journalism,  beginnings  in  colonies.  See 
Beginnings  in  States  and  Territories 
beginnings  in  Rome,  2 
birth  of  English,  6 
Chicago,  374 
commercial,  352 
history  repeated,  264 
origin  of  sensational,  4 
religious,  413 
rural,  404 
Siamese  Twins,  26 
Washington,  291 

Kansas,  early  papers,  232 

journalism,  280 
Kansas-Nebraska  Bill,  280 
Keeley,  James,  375,  393,  509 
Keimer,  Samuel,  33 
Kendall,  Amos,  226 
Kendall,  G.  W.,  259 
Kensey,  S.  A.,  248 
Kentucky,  early  papers,  169 
Kenyon,  Frank,  252 
Killen,  Jacob,  56 
Kimmel,  S.  H.,  181 
King,  Henry,  322 
King,  John,  234 
Kingsley,  J.  L.,  189 
Kollock,  Shepard,  61,  90,  135 

Label  for  advertisements,  397 

Labor  conditions,  96,  277 

Land-grab  exposure,  272 

Laws,  honest  advertising,  394 

Leader,  Des  Moines,  378 

Ledger,  Philadelphia,  278 

Lee,  H.  G.,  237 

Leggett,  William,  203,  214,  224,  369 

Letters,  to  editors,  318 

Libel  suits,  Cooper     vs.     Commercial 

Advertiser,  222 
Cooper  vs.  Courier  &  En- 
quirer, 221 

Cooper  vs.  New  York  Trib- 
une, 222 


458 


INDEX 


Libel  Suits,  Crosby  vs.  Zenger,  42 

Government  vs.  New  York 

World,  407 
McKean  vs.  Cobbett,  101 

Liberator,  153 

License  for  journalism,  403 

Lincoln,  Abraham,  283,  285,  291,  294, 
295,  303 

Literary  daily,  138 

Log  cabin,  208 

Logotypes,  279 

Location,  papers,  108,  348 

Louisiana,  early  papers,  165 

Lounsberry,  Clement  A.,  255 

Lowell,  J.  R.,  258 

Madison,  James,  112,  140,  143 
Maine,  early  papers,  167 
Marble,  Manton,  321,  352,  370,  372 
Marion,  J.  H.,  250 
Martinez,  Antonio,  233 
Maryland,  early  papers,  45 
Massachusetts,  early  papers,  17,  29 
Massacre,  Boston,  86 
Mather,  Increase,  8,  30 
Maxwell,  William,  174 
Maverick,  Augustus,  341 
McClure,  A.  K.,  363 
McClure,  S.  S.,  330 
McKelway,  St.  Clair,  221,  370 
Mecom,  Benjamin,  52 
Medicinal  advertising,  72,  225,  390 
Medill,  Joseph,  265,  276,  352 
Meeker,  Jotham,  232 
Mercury,  American  Weekly,  31 

Cape  Fear,  55 

Charleston,  332 

Newport,  49 

New  York,  77,  80,  83,  87,  93 

Portsmouth,  56 
Mergenthaler  machines,  317 
Meridith,  Hugh,  33 
Merrick,  J.  L.,  251 

Mexican  War  to  Civil  War  Period,  258 
Michigan,  early  papers,  179 
Military  exceptions  for  journalists,  310 
Miller,  Samuel,  180 
Minnesota,  early  papers,  240 
Mississippi,  early  papers,  177 
Mitchell,  E.  P.,  374 
Montana,  early  papers,  253 
Moore,  J.  H.,  236 
Mormons,  246 
Morton,  J.  S.,  246 
Morton,  Thomas,  245 
Mother  Goose  Rhymes,  69 
Moury,  Sylvester,  249 


Mowry,  John,  166 
Municipal  newspapers,  410 
Munsey,  Frank  A.,  373 

National  Era,  262 
National  Republican  organ,  151 
Nebraska,  early  papers,  245 
Nelson,  William  R.,  376 
Nevada,  early  papers,  248 
New  Hampshire,  early  papers,  55 
New  Jersey,  early  papers,  59 
New  Mexico,  early  papers,  233 
New  York,   early  papers,  36 

evening  papers,  341 
newspaper  generals,  302 
News,  Boston  Daily,  331 

Chicago  Daily,  360,  376,  390 
Dallas,  330 
Deseret,  242 
Detroit,  379,  412 
Galveston,  339 
Indianapolis,  336,  359 
Los  Angeles  Municipal,  410 
Portland,  237 
Rocky  Mountain,  378 
San  Francisco,  264 
News,  associations,  city,  317,  375 
"boiled  down,"  67 
charted,  448 
desire  for,  1 
mode  of  treatment,  67,  92,  260, 

292 

suppression  of,  430,  441 
News-Letter,  Boston,  17,  19,  70 
News-Letters,  Campbell's  printed,  18, 

27,  69,  70 

Campbell's  written,  17 
English,  6 
Roman,  2 
Newspaper,  adless,  408 

advertising,  355,  390,  392 
advertising  label,  397 
battles,  211 

beginnings  in  colonies.  See 
Beginnings     in     States 
and  Territories 
changes,  335 
conditions  in  North,  309 
conditions  in  West,  310 
cost  of  production,  69,  159 
disinfected,  107 
endowed,  409 
ethics,  388,  390,  413,  441, 

443 

federal  supervision  of,  226 
first  use  of  word,  7 
literary  influences,  81 


INDEX 


459 


Newspaper,  manners,  320 

military  criticism  of,  302 

municipal,  410 

near,  9 

office  mobbed,  89 

oral,  5,  15,  179,  263 

organ  of  postmasters,  29 

ownership,   statement   of, 

394 

political  tracts,  101 
printed  on  wall-paper,  306 
printed    on    wrapping-pa- 
per, 310 
printing    trading   stamps, 

412 
Publishers'       Association, 

386 

precursors  of  American,  8 
readjustment,  353 
spoken,  5,  15,  179,  263 
subscription  rates  raised, 

307,  423 
subscriptions    for    limited 

periods,  306 
Sunday,  309,  379,  419 
tickets,  308 
written,  5,    15,    179,   244, 

248 

Niles,  Ezekiah,  151 
Noah,  Mordecai,  145,  153,  157,  198 
North,  S.  N.  B.,  348 
North     American,    Philadelphia,   266, 

269,  390 

North  Carolina,  early  papers,  53 
North  Dakota,  early  papers,  255 
Norton,  B.  H.,  190 
Nye,  E.  W.,  255 

Ohio,  early  papers,  174 
Oklahoma,  early  papers,  235 
Older,  Fremont,  443 
"Oldstyle,  Jonathan,"  138 
Oral  newspapers,  5,  15,  179,  263 
Oregon,  early  papers,  236 
Oregonian,  Portland,  379 
Organs,   abolition,  152,  262 

army,  90,  261,  301,  426 

carpet-baggers,  333 

Ku-Klux  Klan,  334 
Otis,  Harrison  Gray,  377 

Pacific  Coast  journalism,  230,  262,  310 

newspapers,  310 
Paper,  scarcity,  69,  97,  182,  243,  305, 

422 

made  from  pulp,  346,  386 
mills,  62,  70,  98,  386 


Parker,  James,  43,  51,  95 
Parks,  William,  -1 
Party  organ  in  Maine,  148 
patronage,  223 
press  in  Albany,  150 
Peek,  Alvin  S.,  383 
Pennsylvania,  early  papers,  31 
Penny  Press,  in  Boston,  I'M) 

in  New  York,  185 
in  Philadelphia,  192 
Periods,  newspaper, 

Colonial  Period,  62 
Revolutionary  Period,  82 
Period  of  Early  Republic,  100 
Party  Press  Period,  140 
Transition  Period,  206 
Mexican   War  to  Civil   War 

Period,  258 
Civil  War  Period,  285 
Reconstruction  Period,  317 
Period  of  Financial  Readjust- 
ment, 352 
Period  of  Social  Readjustment, 

388 

Peripatetic  papers,  299,  322 
Personal  journalism,  318,  319,  321 
Philadelphia  journalism,  90,  336,  431 
Phillips,  Eleazer,  46 
Pickering,  Loring,  337 
Picric  journalism,  319,  321 
Pigeon  expresses,  217 
Plaindealer,  Cleveland,  338,  378 
Political  advertising,  446 
Polk,  J.  K.,  261 
Pony  express,  219,  252,  258 
Post,  Boston  Daily,  270,  331 

Boston  Evening,  69,  79,  84,  331 
Boston  Penny,  190" 
Charleston  Morning,  91 
Chicago,  336,  342 
New  York  Daily  Evening,  114, 135, 

141,  280,  308,  368,  398,  433 
New  York  Evening,  39,  42 
New  York  Morning,  186 
Pennsylvania  Evening,  90,  93 
San  Francisco,  337 
Postal  organs  of  Massachusetts,  29 

regulations,  75,  95, 112, 161,  314, 

347,  394 
Post-Boy,  Boston,  26 

New  York,  74 
Post-office  printing,  305 
Post-offices  as  advertising  agencies,  74 
Post  vs.  press,  95 
Post-riders,  113 
Poulson,  Zachariah,  Jr.,  155 
Prentice,  George  D.,  340 


460 


INDEX 


Present  state  of  New-English  affairs,  8 
Press,  Grand  Rapids,  359 

Philadelphia,  276,  336 

Pittsburg,  358 

St.  Paul  Pioneer,  379 
Press,  and  pestilence,  106 

and  politics,  148 

and  U.S.  Bank,  156 

vs.  Presidents,  105 

as  detective,  360 

Associated,  343,  384,  415 

Associations,  275,  384 

battle  of  statesmen,  124 

censorship,  28,  290,  423 

divided,  104 

freedom  of,  107,  110,  450 

gag  law,  331 

mirror  of  times,  100,  144,  197 

modesty  of  politicians,  215 

party,  115,  118,  140,223 

personal  attacks  of,  101 

regulation  of,  389 

sensational,  368,  371 

Tory,  141 

United,  385 

wheels,  on,  322 
Presses,  printing,  63,  95,  160,  278,  317, 

386 

Proclamations,  forged  by  press,  297 
Prohibition,  effects  on  journalism,  398 
Public-Ledger,  Philadelphia,  192 
Publicity,  pitiless,  440 
Publick-Ocourrences,  9,  19 
Puclot,  L.,  165 
Pulitzer,  Albert,  372 
Pulitzer,  Joseph,  339,  370,  372 
Punchinello,  321 
Purdy,  Alexander,  51 

Rags,  advertisements  for,  97 

Ray,  C.  H.,  293 

Raymond,  Henry  Jarvis,  211,  226,  269, 
273,  276,  283,  302 

Reconstruction  journalism,  317 

Record,  Chicago,  375 

Register,  Weekly,  151 

Regulation  of  press,  389 

Reid,  Whitelaw,  210,  379,  429,  435 

Religious  journalism,  331 

Religious  dailies,  266 

in  New  York,  267 
in  Philadelphia,  266 

Reporter,  First  Star,  154 

Republican,  Chicago,  336 
Omaha,  379 
St.  Louis,  338,  379 

Revere,  Paul,  86 


Revival  of  newspapers;  290 

Revolutionary  period,  82 

Reynolds,  J.  S.,  253 

Rhett,  BarnweU,  332 

Rhode  Island,  early  papers,  48 

Richard,  Rev.  Father  Gabriel,  16,  179 

Richards,  D.  H.,  231 

Richards,  William,  242 

Rind,  William,  51 

Ritchie,  Thomas,  261 

Rivington,  James,  88,  95,  96 

Roman  journalism,  2 

Rosewater,  Edward,  246,  337 

Roulstone,  George,  174 

Russell,  Benjamin,  129 

San  Francisco  dailies,  263 

Sargent,  Eppes,  186 

Scarcity  of  paper,  69,  97,  243,  305,  422 

Scripps,  James  E.,  338 

papers  of,  416,  417 

Seaton,  W.  W.,  173 

Secession,  Southern  press  on,  282 

Sedition  Laws,  passage  of,  102 

Seitz,  Don  C.,  381,  409,  438 

Semple,  Robert,  239 

Senate,  press  restriction  of,  222 

Sensational  journalism,  4,  223,  368,  371 

Service  work,  393 

Seward,  W.  H.,  207,  222,  283 

Sheldon,  Rev.  Charles,  413,  441 

Shepard,  H.  D.,  186 

Siamese  Twins  in  journalism,  26 

Simonton,  J.  W.,  272,  343 

Slack,  A.  E.,  255 

Slavery  discussions,  279 

Slaves,  sold  by  newspapers,  93 

Smith,  S.  H.,  106,  173 

South  Carolina,  early  papers,  47 

South  Dakota,  early  papers,  246 

Southern  press,  334 

Spain,  war  with,  364 

Spanish-English  papers,  234 

Spoken  newspapers,  5,  15,  179 

Spooner,  J.  P.,  167 

Spy,  Massachusetts,  85,  97,  111 

Stamp  Act,  1765,  82 

Massachusetts,  1755,  78 
Massachusetts,  1785,  109 
New  York,  1756,  79 
repeal  of,  84 

Star,  Kansas  City,  376 

Washington,  336,  374,  375 

State-exemption  for  journalists,  310 

State-subsidized  newspaper,  69 

Statistics,  227,  348,  349,  350,  418 

Steam  expresses,  212 


INDEX 


461 


Stereotyping  improvements,  189,  311 

Stewart,  Andrew,  64 

Stokes,  Benjamin,  177 

Stone,  Melville  EM  42,  376,  386, 413, 416 

Storey,  Wilbur  F.,  286 

Stout,  Elihu,  177 

Stowe,  H.  B.,  262 

Strike,  first  printers',  96 

Subscribers,  poor  pay,  38,  43,  68,  65, 

68,  113,  178,  383 
Summary,  New  London,  62 
Sun,  Baltimore,  190,  219,  259 

New  (York,  187, 212, 267, 309, 325, 
368,  385 

Shawanoe,  232 

San  Francisco,  264 

True,  188 

Sunday  newspapers,  309,  379,  419 
Suppression  of  news,  430,  441,  442 
Suspension   of   Southern   newspapers, 
289 

Tabloid  newspapers,  373 
Tariff  newspapers,  146 
Taxes,   Massachusetts,  79 

Newspapers  on,  79 

New  York,  80 

United  States,  346 

Virginia,  275 
Taylor,  Charles  H.,  438 
Taylor,  Zachary,  262 
Tea  Party,  Report  of,  86 
Telegram,  Toledo,  378 
Telegraph,  273,  317,  353 
Tennessee,  early  papers,  174 
Tennessean,  Nashville,  335,  360 
Texas,  early  papers,  216 
Texas  Republic  journalism,  216 
Thomas,  Isaiah,  36,  85,  116,  133 
Tilden,  S.  J.,  327,  341 
Time,  eleven  days  lost,  77 
Times,  Boston,  191 

Chicago,  286 

Los  Angeles,  377 

New  York,  226,  279,  288,  298, 
312,  318,  438 

Philadelphia,  363 

Troy,  359 

Times-Star,  Cincinnati,  378 
Timothy,  Lewis,  47 
Timothy,  Peter,  48 
Titcomb,  Benjamin,  Jr.,  168 
Topliff,  Samuel,  185,  217 
Tory  press,  141 
Towne,  Benjamin,  90 
Trading  stamps,  with  newspapers,  412 
Transcript,  Albany,  190 


Transcript,  Baltimore,  190 
Boston,  436 
New  York,  188 
Philadelphia,  190,  193 
Transition  Period,  206 
Tribune,  Boston,  331 

Chicago,  265,  276,  281,  342, 

390,  426,  447 
Detroit,  379 
Kansas,  233,  281 
Minneapolis,  379 
New  York,  209,  213,  222,  258, 
272,  276,  281,  285,  287,  291, 
295,298,311,318,323,362, 
379  I 

Triumvirate,  Van  Buren,  150 
Tweed  Ring  exposed,  329 
Tyler,  Moses  C.f  81 
Typographical  unions,  277,  362,  368 
Typography,  62,  64,  279,  317 

United  Press,  375,  385,  416 
United  States  Bank,  156,  192 
United  States  Daily,  412 \ 
Universal  Instructor  in  all  the  Arts  and 
Sciences;  and  Pennsylvania  Gazette,  34 
Utah,  early  papers,  242 
Utah  war,  243 

Van  Anden,  Isaac,  20 
Van  Buren,  Martin,  150,  193,  208,  261 
Van  Buren  triumvirate,  150 
Vanity  Fair,  283 
Vault,  William,  236 
Vermont,  early  papers,  166 
Villard,  Oswald  G.,  416,  431 
"Villain  Raymond,"  272 
Vincent,  George  E.,  430 
Vindicator,  236 
Virginia,  early  papers,  50 
Vituperation  of  press,  143,  197,  319 

Wait,  Aaron  E.,  238 

Wait,  Thomas  B.,  167 

Wall-paper  editions,  306 

Walter,  Cornelia,  185 

Walter,  Lynde  N.,  185 

War,  correspondents,    260,    288,    289, 

293,  294,  364,  427 
expenses,  328,  365 
newspaper,  29,  38 
Warner,  Charles  Dudley,  74,  226,  363, 

355 

Washington,  attack  on,  104 
Washington,  early  papers,  244 
Watterson,  Henry,  300,  326,  341,  379, 

388 


462 


INDEX 


Wayland,  L.,  135 

Webb,  James  Watson,  167,  159,  198, 

212,  222,  276 
Webb,  Joseph,  248 
Weed,  Thurlow,  207,  222,  270 
•Weekly  Newes,  6 

Webster,  Daniel,  147,  173,  262,  270 
Webster,  Noah,  134 
Wells,  Robert,  48 
Wells,  William,  165 
West  Virginia,  early  papers,  171 
Western  editors,  321,  378 
WThiskey  Ring  exposed,  330 
White,  Horace,  266,  276 
White,  Isaac  D.,  360,  402 
White,  W.  A.,  406 
Whitman,  Walt,  221 
Whitmarsh,  Thomas,  47 
Wild  West  weeklies,  382 
Wiley,  J.  W.,  239,  244 
Wiley,  Louis,  438 
Willis,  Nathaniel,  172,  175 
Willis,  N.  Parker,  172 


Wilson,  James,  57 

Winter  weather  and  news,  65,  247 

Wisconsin,  early  papers,  231 

Wisconsin,  Milwaukee,  379 

Woodruff,  W.  E.,  182 

Wordless  journalism,  131 

World,  New  York,  269,  285,  298,  339, 

352,  360,   362,   365,   370,  381,  380, 

401,  407,  438,  441 
Written  newspapers,  1,  5,  6,  15,  179, 

244,  248 
Wyoming,  early  papers,  254 

Yachts,  news,  219 
Yerba  Buena  paper,  240 
Young,  Brigham,  242 
Young,  Charles  de,  337 
Young,  M.  H.  de,  338 

Zane,  J.  H.,  247 

Zenger,  John  Peter,  38,  39,  43 

Ziebach,  Frank  M.,  246 


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